Union minister of science and technology Jitendra Singh has said that the number of Indian spacetech startups have gone up from just 1 in 2014 to 189 in 2023.
Citing data of the department for promotion of industry and internal trade (DPIIT), Singh informed the Parliament that the investment in spacetech startups has climbed to $124.7 Mn.
Singh told the Rajya Sabha that the government has set up a space technology incubation centre (S-TIC) to nurture and attract young students with innovative ideas and enable them to carry out research and set up new startups in the space segment.
Elaborating on the significance of the Indian Space Policy 2023, Singh said that it will enable end-to-end participation of privately owned spacetech companies in all domains of space-related activities.
He said that the incentives offered by the government under the space policies have enabled some privately owned spacetech companies to launch their own satellites.
According to a report by Inc42 titled ‘Indian Spacetech Startup Landscape and Market Opportunity, 2023’, more than 150 spacetech startups secured $285 Mn+ in funding between 2014 and 2023. Most of them are backed by a diverse array of active investors, including prominent names such as Pi Ventures, Speciale Invest, Peak XV (formerly Sequoia Capital India and Southeast Asia), Mumbai Angels, Artha India Ventures and 9Unicorns, among others.
Earlier this year, Skyroot secured INR 225 Cr (approximately $27.5 Mn) in a Pre-Series C funding round led by Temasek to drive the next phase of growth through increased investments in infrastructure, reinforcement of its technology leadership, attraction of top-tier talent, and the enhancement of its launch frequency and capabilities
It is pertinent to note that in October this year, Skyroot also unveiled its indigenously built rocket Vikram-I at its new headquarters.
Another spacetech startup Agnikul, which owns the first private launchpad within the ISRO campus, secured INR 200 Cr ($26.7 Mn) in October to accelerate the commercialisation of its existing technologies and invest more in key facilities such as mobile launchpads and other test rigs to cater to growing customer requirements.
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