Optics11 Life is an Amsterdam-based life science instrumentation company founded in 2011 as a spin-off of Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam by physics professor Davide Iannuzzi and entrepreneur Hans Brouwer. It develops fiber-optic instruments that measure the mechanical properties of soft and living materials such as cells, hydrogels, spheroids, organoids and tissues in liquid under near-physiological conditions. Its product line includes Piuma, a tabletop nanoindenter for soft-material testing; Chiaro, a microscope-compatible nanoindenter; Pavone, a high-throughput nanoindentation and imaging platform; and Cuore, a non-destructive contractility platform for 3D engineered muscle bundles. In 2025 the company launched Prova, an analytics software for mechanical characterization data.

The platforms are used across fibrosis, oncology, cardiology, neuromuscular disorders, regenerative medicine, wound healing and cultured meat, for drug screening, toxicity testing, functional assays, degradability testing and biomaterial quality control. Named users include researchers at VU University Medical Centre Amsterdam, Leiden University Medical Center and Boehringer Ingelheim. The company positions its tools as supporting new approach methodologies that reduce animal testing. Recent collaborations include a standardization and reproducibility partnership with Axol Bioscience in cardiac research, membership of the MAGIC consortium on neuromuscular disease, and a Cuore-based FSHD drug-response project with LUMC and Atrogi as part of a €3 million European program.

Optics11 Life was financed by Forward.one and Value Creation Capital, which backed a €5 million round in September 2022 to support US expansion and new high-throughput products. A further round in September 2025, led by ECFG with Forward.one and Value Creation Capital, was intended to fund its global commercial footprint and product portfolio. Niek Rijnveld stepped down as CEO in 2025, and Jacquelien ten Dam was appointed CEO in November 2025 after Hans Brouwer served as interim CEO. The company is headquartered in Amsterdam, has a US presence, and reports a team of 60+ people.