Dutch startup Optics11 is in talks with dozens of navies about using its optical fiber sensing technology for underwater monitoring and threat detection. Chief Executive Officer Paul Heiden said between five and ten navies have already signed on as clients.

Heiden told Defense News at the Euronaval maritime defense exhibition outside Paris on Nov. 4 that the company expects around 35 paid trials this year. Navies testing the technology include Germany, Sweden, the United Kingdom, Belgium and France.

The German Navy is conducting several tests through various local defense prime partners. The trials give participating navies an opportunity to evaluate technology that Optics11 says can deliver greater sensitivity and resolution than traditional passive sonar.

The system beams light through optic fiber to detect acoustic vibrations underwater. It can support static monitoring installations or towed array sensors used by naval platforms.

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Optics11 is developing a towed array for the Royal Netherlands Navy’s future Orka-class submarines, which were ordered from France’s Naval Group. Its product portfolio also includes OptiBarrier, a stationary seabed monitoring system, and OptiArray, a towed array that can operate from submarines and unmanned vessels.

“Every navy knows that this is the technology of the future,” Heiden said.

Much of the company’s work remains concealed from public view. Heiden described nearly everything connected to underwater data collection as “extremely secret” and said considerable information about naval use of Optics11 technology is classified.

The company’s products are currently deployed in war zones, according to Heiden, although he declined to provide details. The secrecy extends to the company’s methods for protecting the research behind its systems.

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Heiden said Optics11 holds a technology lead in optical fiber sensing after years of deep tech research. He believes that work would make it difficult for competitors to enter markets including Europe, the Middle East and South East Asia with similar technology.

The CEO said he is uncertain where China or the United States stands in developing comparable systems. Optics11 technology was initially used for medical applications and is sensitive enough to detect cells dividing, according to Heiden.

For underwater operations, the company’s fiber optic sensing can detect an oil tanker at 100 kilometers, Heiden said. Its most crucial developments during the past seven to eight years are protected largely through trade secrets instead of patents because of the technology’s sensitivity.

The Dutch government provides specialists who help Optics11 protect its data and vets company employees working with classified technology. Heiden also holds monthly internal discussions to ensure employees disclose whether they or their families are facing threats or pressure.

Optics11 plans to build and sell its products locally to reduce supply chain risks for customers. The strategy also reflects governments’ desire to have military investments flow back into their national economies, with Optics11 identifying local prime contractors and working with them to integrate its technology.

The company already works with Saab, Rheinmetall, Fincantieri, Thales and Exail. It is also a technology supplier for Ocean Infinity, which the United Kingdom selected to manage an anti-submarine surveillance program under Britain’s Atlantic Bastion initiative.

Heiden said the technology’s greater sensitivity produces a “much larger” volume of sensing data per cubic nautical mile. Optics11 processes that information through its own edge computing software after determining that third party sonar processing products could not extract sufficient value from the company’s dense data.

Artificial intelligence has reduced the software development effort required by the company, according to Heiden. Optics11 now employs ten developers, compared with plans during 2024 and 2025 that anticipated around 60 to 80 people working in software development.

Optics11 has worked with the Royal Netherlands Navy for at least eight years. The Dutch military has provided millions of euros in subsidies, guided development and tested the company’s technology aboard submarines, according to Heiden.

The startup raised around €100 million during the past 15 months through equity financing and €25 million in venture debt financing from the European Investment Bank. Heiden said Optics11 may raise more money next year at a valuation exceeding US$1 billion, while the company expects to become cash flow positive in 2028.

Potential funding would partly support expansion in the Middle East and South East Asia, where Optics11 is opening offices and hiring personnel. Heiden said the company’s goal is to operate in a highly localized manner as demand for its closely guarded underwater technology expands.

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