A space technology company based in India has achieved a historic milestone by becoming the nation’s first billion-dollar startup in the aerospace sector. Skyroot Aerospace reached the $1.1 billion valuation mark following a successful $60 million funding round led by Singapore’s government investment fund GIC and California-based Sherpalo Ventures.
BlackRock, the global investment management giant, also participated in this latest financing effort, which brings Skyroot’s cumulative funding to $160 million since its establishment, according to a company announcement released Thursday.
The aerospace firm made history in 2022 when it successfully launched the first privately built rocket developed entirely within India and is now preparing for the debut flight of Vikram-1, the nation’s first commercial orbital rocket.
Lieutenant General AK Bhatt, who serves as director general of the Indian Space Association industry group, believes this achievement delivers a powerful message about India’s space industry capabilities. The valuation and high-profile investors provide a “strong signal to global investors” regarding the legitimacy of India’s space sector, Bhatt stated.
Skyroot’s emergence comes as India’s national space agency, the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO), has experienced a series of unsuccessful orbital missions, creating opportunities for private sector alternatives.
The company, established in 2018 in Hyderabad, broke new ground by becoming the first private space enterprise to secure access to ISRO’s testing and launch infrastructure when India opened its space sector to commercial companies in 2020.
Pawan Kumar Chandana, who co-founded and leads Skyroot Aerospace as CEO, emphasized the strategic importance of rocket launch capabilities, noting that only a limited number of nations and private entities possess such technology. “This will promote more and more investments in India,” Chandana commented.
The investment round brings additional expertise to Skyroot’s leadership, as Ram Shriram, founder of Sherpalo Ventures and an early Google investor, will join the company’s board of directors.
According to Skyroot officials, the new capital will enable the company to accelerate Vikram-1 launch operations, expand production facilities, and continue developing its next-generation Vikram-2 rocket system.
