Spurred by government policy,Spacetech startups in India are ready to take off local tech expertise and increase investor interest. Amid the pandemic, many startups that include Agnikul, Bellatrix, Pixxel among others have raised huge amounts of funds. 

These startups which are led by young leaders are identifying unique opportunities in space that can solve problems across industries.

Although the Indian Space Research Organization (ISRO) has been at the forefront for driving the space sector so far, the finance minister has announced the opening up the sector to private players.  Some of the reforms include launches and space-based services by introducing a predictable policy and regulatory environment to private players, leveling the playing field for private companies in satellites, and providing access to geospatial data and facilities of ISRO.

“The government is making a lot of good noise, we are very excited with the intent.. that's a great start. The space tech startups in India are extremely good and can launch a rocket at 1/3 rd the cost as compared to the US in the same segment," says Arpit Agarwal, principal at Blume Ventures.

"India has many advantages in space tech. Indian companies will spend less both in terms of manufacturing and operating costs as compared to US companies, we have an enormous talent pool of engineers that we can tap into and the VC eco system is warming up," said Awais Ahmed,CEO, Pixxel that raised $5 million in seed funding in August.

Ahmed said that they have completed the manufacturing and testing of the first satellite in January this year and are booked for a launch. “The launch has been pushed to November-December due to the lockdown. In the meantime, we are building the second satellite."

“Last 6 months interest has been increasing with 2-3 big fundings in the last six months. This was unthinkable 1.5 years ago," added Ahmed.

“Space startups have a long gestation cycle so lot of VCs were not looking at this sector. The bigger VC funds look for bigger deals. It needs lot more effort and focus to identify such companies, but there is enormous potential in India. People are waiting for 1-2 success stories... things will open up then," Ravi Thakur, co-founder, StartupXseed.