Data are presented demonstrating optical switching and memory in a bistable vertical-cavity surface-emitting laser (VCSEL). Optical switching from lasing to nonlasing or from nonlasing to lasing in the vertical-cavity laser was demonstrated using an AlGaAs probe laser at approximately 0.78 mu m.< <ETX xmlns:mml="http://www.w3.org/1998/Math/MathML" xmlns:xlink="http://www.w3.org/1999/xlink">></ETX>