After 1935, Meopta optika became a subsidiary of Zbrojovka Brno and a major supplier of military optics for the Czechoslovak Army.

The company retained its focus on military production when it was seized by the Germans during the occupation of Czechoslovakia as well as after WWII, when it was nationalized and renamed to Meopta – an acronym for MEchanická OPTická výrobA ("mechanical optical manufacturing").

The abrupt halt of military demand after the dissolution of the Warsaw pact forced the company to refocus mainly on civilian applications.

Meopta U.S.A., Inc. was founded by the same Czech-American family in New York in 1960 under the name Tyrolit Company, Inc. At that time, its main business was selling grinding wheels in the US and Canada.

Meopta owner Paul Rausnitz received the Medal of Merit for the State in the field of business from the hands of the President of the Republic Miloš Zeman on October 28.