Optics11 has signed a Strategic Collaboration Agreement with Saab to strengthen cooperation in the development of advanced underwater sensing and maritime security capabilities.
Optics11 is a Dutch deep-tech company pioneering passive fibre optic sensing for underwater intelligence and energy grids.
“Signing a Strategic Collaboration Agreement with Saab is a significant milestone for Optics11 and reflects the importance of bringing together Europe's leading defence and technology specialists. Protecting our seas and the critical infrastructure beneath them requires increasingly sophisticated capabilities, but no single company can deliver every part of the solution. By combining our breakthrough passive fibre optic sensing technology with Saab's extensive defence expertise and broad portfolio of underwater systems, we have an opportunity to establish entirely new standards in underwater protection, strengthening the capabilities available to European nations and their allies," CEO of Optics11, Paul Heiden, said.
The agreement establishes a framework for closer collaboration between the two companies, combining Optics11's experience in highly sensitive passive fibre optic sensing with Saab's extensive experience in defence technology, underwater systems and integration.
“By combining our expertise with Optics11’s innovative sensing technology, we enhance awareness and protection beneath the surface," Head of Underwater Systems at Saab, Åsa Schöllin, said.
As European nations look to strengthen maritime security capabilities amid growing concerns surrounding hybrid warfare and the protection of critical underwater infrastructure, the agreement reflects the increasing importance of collaboration between specialist technology providers and established defence companies.
Optics11's OptiArray system was recently selected by the Dutch Ministry of Defence for its ASWINABO programme.