aibioCytokinetics sues Bristol-Myers Squibb and MyoKardia in Delaware patent suit over MYQORZO
Tickers CYTK
Cytokinetics (Nasdaq: CYTK) filed a complaint on August 13, 2026, seeking a declaratory judgment that it does not infringe U.S. Patent No. 12,616,697 and that the patent's claims are invalid. The defendants are Bristol-Myers Squibb and MyoKardia.
Key facts
- Company
- Cytokinetics, Incorporated (NASDAQ: CYTK)
- News type
- Legal
- Primary source
- CYTOKINETICS INC Form 8-K filed August 13, 2026 (SEC EDGAR)
Cytokinetics, Incorporated (Nasdaq: CYTK) filed a patent lawsuit on August 13, 2026, against Bristol-Myers Squibb Company and MyoKardia, Inc. The complaint was filed in the United States District Court for the District of Delaware. Cytokinetics disclosed it in a Form 8-K the same day. Cytokinetics is the plaintiff. The defendants are Bristol-Myers Squibb and MyoKardia, which the filing does not describe further. The 8-K gives no case number.
What the complaint asks for
The complaint seeks a declaratory judgment that Cytokinetics does not infringe U.S. Patent No. 12,616,697, which the filing calls the '697 patent, and that the patent's claims are invalid. It also asks for a judgment preliminarily and permanently enjoining the defendants, and those acting in concert with them, from threatening or starting infringement litigation against Cytokinetics or against users, customers, dealers, suppliers, sellers or distributors of its MYQORZO (aficamten). The company asks for its costs and for attorneys' fees under 35 U.S.C. § 285, which applies in exceptional cases. It has demanded a jury trial on all triable issues.
The 8-K does not say when the patent was issued, what product or claim the defendants have asserted against Cytokinetics, or whether any demand letter came before the suit. It also does not give damages or a dollar amount in dispute.
The company says it "intends to vigorously assert its legal rights" but that "the outcome of any litigation is inherently uncertain." It says it will provide updates in its SEC filings to the extent required or appropriate and does not otherwise intend to comment. John O. Faurescu, SVP, Deputy General Counsel & Secretary, signed the 8-K.
The product at stake
MYQORZO is Cytokinetics' first commercial product. The company's annual report for 2025 says the U.S. Food and Drug Administration approved it in December 2025, in 5, 10, 15 and 20 mg tablets. MYQORZO is an allosteric, reversible inhibitor of cardiac myosin, and the approval included a risk evaluation and mitigation strategy. Sanofi is responsible for development and commercialization of aficamten in China, where it is to be commercialized as MYQORZO. Bayer Consumer Care AG holds an exclusive license for Japan.
The annual report also says the milestones and royalties it may receive from Sanofi and Bayer depend on those partners' efforts to commercialize aficamten. It also describes financing arrangements with Royalty Pharma, including revenue participation rights on aficamten and a development funding loan.
The company's finances
The annual report gives a net loss of $785.0 million for 2025, compared with $589.5 million for 2024. The statement of operations in the same report shows the 2025 net loss as $784,955 thousand, which includes a debt conversion expense of $121,249 thousand. The company used $510.0 million in operations in 2025, compared with $395.9 million in 2024. Cash and cash equivalents were $122.5 million at December 31, 2025, and short-term investments were $759.7 million.
The latest quarterly figures, for the period ended June 30, 2026, show cash and cash equivalents of $255.3 million and short-term investments of $910.4 million. The quarterly report was filed August 6, 2026, before the lawsuit.
The 8-K contains no statement on how the lawsuit's cost will be paid or how it would affect the commercial launch of MYQORZO. It does not say whether Cytokinetics has recorded any reserve for the case, and it does not address a possible loss.
What comes next
The complaint is at the start of the process. The filing does not say when the defendants must respond, or when a trial might be scheduled.
The 8-K does not say who owns the '697 patent or what the defendants have said about it. Cytokinetics is asking a Delaware court to clear the way for its first product while it is still losing money, and its own filing treats the outcome as uncertain.