Kiki Liu is the CEO at Twente Medical Optics. After completing her Master’s degree at TU Delft in 2012, she built a career at the intersection of technology, market strategy, and commercialization. In the past decades, she specialized in the marketing and sales sector in the medical device industry, across both the Netherlands and China. In 2023, she enrolled in the MBA program at the University of Twente, specializing in Entrepreneurship, Innovation, and Strategy. Through the UT MedTech Center, Kiki was introduced to the HAPI technology — a moment that aligned her professional expertise with her passion for medtech innovation and entrepreneurship. Recognizing the strong commercial potential of HAPI, she joined forces with prof. Wiendelt Steenbergen (the CSO) to co-found TMO.

Prof. Dr. Wiendelt Steenbergen is the head of the Biomedical Photonic Imaging (BMPI) research group at the university. He has been leading the development of the Handheld Laser Perfusion Imaging (HAPI) technology since 2017 and is a recognized expert in biomedical optics and microcirculation imaging. Over the years, Wiendelt has seen many promising technologies remain confined to academic environments. Driven by a strong belief in HAPI’s clinical relevance and transformative potential for healthcare, he was determined to translate this technology from the laboratory into real-world clinical practice. However, this ambition required a complementary partner with strong commercial and entrepreneurial expertise.

Together, Wiendelt and Kiki form a highly complementary founding team. Both are pragmatic, data-driven, and strongly goal-oriented, yet they contribute distinct and essential strengths. Wiendelt provides deep scientific and technological leadership, extensive academic credibility, and a strong international research network. Kiki leads the business and commercialization strategy, combining strong communication skills with analytical rigor, market insight, and financial understanding. She is experienced in building networks from the ground up, identifying unmet clinical needs, and translating technological capabilities into scalable business opportunities.

This combination of world-class scientific expertise and market-driven entrepreneurial leadership forms the foundation of Twente Medical Optics and positions the company to successfully bring HAPI from academic innovation to global clinical adoption.