AET Pharma US Inc. is a pharmaceutical company with a U.S. office in Gaithersburg, Maryland. It is the U.S. arm of Alfred E. Tiefenbacher GmbH & Co. KG (AET), a privately held, family-owned German pharmaceutical group headquartered in Hamburg. The parent company, founded in 1963, operates as the TIEFENBACHER GROUP and employs over 900 people worldwide. AET Pharma US Inc. was established in 2009 to further the group's operations in the United States.
As part of the TIEFENBACHER GROUP, AET Pharma US Inc. is involved in the development, manufacturing, and registration of generic and value-added medicines for licensing to marketing partners. The parent company's portfolio includes over 180 pharmaceutical products in various therapeutic areas and dosage forms. The group operates its own research and development laboratories and manufacturing facilities, managing the entire pharmaceutical value chain from API sourcing to supply chain management for launches in over 80 countries. The company focuses on making pharmaceuticals more affordable and accessible.
AET Pharma US Inc.'s patent litigation posture is that of an operating company defending its products. The company has been tracked as a defendant in one patent case and has not appeared as a plaintiff. This is consistent with the business model of a generic pharmaceutical manufacturer, which often faces patent infringement lawsuits from brand-name drug companies when seeking to market generic versions of existing drugs.
The company's single tracked case is Harmony Biosciences Management Inc et al. v. AET Pharma US Inc et al., filed in the Delaware District Court on April 20, 2026. This lawsuit concerns patent infringement related to Harmony Biosciences' drug WAKIX® (pitolisant), which is used to treat narcolepsy. AET is one of the Abbreviated New Drug Application (ANDA) filers seeking to market a generic version of the drug. The litigation is part of Harmony Biosciences' strategy to protect its intellectual property for WAKIX®.