India's spacetech startups raise $871 million as private sector takes off

Skyroot's orbital launch and unicorn status prove policy reforms fuelled rapid industry growth

India's space technology (spacetech) startups, spanning launch vehicles, satellite manufacturing, propulsion systems, space situational awareness, earth observation, and downstream analytics, have raised about $871 million across 241 funding rounds involving 285 companies as of July 2026, according to Tracxn. The sector had raised just $43 million across 12 rounds in 2021, highlighting its rapid growth over the past five years. More than 60 per cent of the capital has gone to the 10 most-funded startups, led by Skyroot Aerospace with $150 million.

 

Policy reforms have fuelled India's private space sector, attracting investment and enabling the country's first spacetech unicorn and its first privately developed orbital launch vehicle.

 

 

Skyroot's Vikram-1 reached a 450 km Low Earth Orbit (LEO) on July 18, 2026, deploying four payloads, including technology demonstrations from Grahaa Space, Cosmoserve, DCubed, and Skyroot's SCOPE satellite. The mission made India the third country after the US and China to achieve a privately developed orbital launch capability.

 

The launch also highlights the pace of ecosystem development. India achieved its first private orbital launch within six years of opening the sector to private participation in 2020. Skyroot plans another test flight later in 2026 before commencing commercial launch operations in 2027.

 

Funding increased from $43 million across 12 rounds in 2021 to a record $200 million across 53 rounds in 2025, with 2026 year to date (YTD) maintaining strong momentum. Five funding rounds — Skyroot Aerospace ($50 million Series C), Digantara ($50 million Series B), EtherealX ($21 million Series A), Bellatrix Aerospace ($20 million Series A), and AgniKul Cosmos ($17 million Series C) — collectively contributed $158 million, accounting for more than half of the capital raised across 2025 and 2026.

 

Seed-stage funding increased from $7 million in 2022 to $62 million in 2025, while late-stage funding emerged for the first time, reaching $17 million in 2025 and $53 million in 2026 YTD. The investor base has also expanded from domestic venture capital firms and angel investors to sovereign wealth funds and global institutional investors.

 

The top 10 funded companies have collectively raised more than $548 million, led by Skyroot ($150 million), Pixxel ($96 million), AgniKul Cosmos ($76M million, Digantara ($67 million), and Bellatrix Aerospace ($34 million). Skyroot became India's first spacetech unicorn following its $50 million Series C in May 2026, while Pixxel, AgniKul Cosmos, and Digantara have also attracted significant funding.

 

Bengaluru leads with $495 million across 106 rounds, followed by Hyderabad ($205 million) and Chennai ($80 million). Together, these three cities account for the majority of equity funding raised by India's private spacetech ecosystem.