“This will be a 150-kg high-resolution indigenously-developed satellite, and we plan to launch a constellation of five satellites, with Drishiti being the first. By this time next year, we will already be in space. We aim to position ourselves as a key provider of data across various altitudes,” he said, adding that the ready-to-launch satellite will be transported to the US.

“Earlier, we considered the ISRO spaceport, but there were some timeline challenges. While discussions with them are still ongoing, we have finalized SpaceX for this launch, being the first startup to do so,” Mehta said, adding that this marks a full circle for the team, who were the Asian Finalists at the SpaceX Hyperloop Competition in 2019. 

In September, Infosys, a major Indian IT firm, acquired a minority stake in GalaxEye for Rs 17 crore. Speaking about the partnership, Mehta highlighted its strategic importance. “Infosys coming on board is crucial for us because once the satellite is in orbit, there will be a massive amount of data to manage,” the IIT-M alumni explained.

By partnering with Infosys, GalaxEye can leverage the company’s vast expertise and global market reach. “Infosys has a wide range of use cases, and instead of reinventing the wheel and going the IT way, we plan to do data processing and signal management. This collaboration will enable us to develop downstream applications that can serve a variety of industries, effectively harnessing the satellite’s capabilities,” Mehta added. 

Another insight he shared is that standalone satellite imagery won’t be sufficient for industries. “Companies typically rely on multiple sources of intelligence—whether from partners, the industry itself, or other channels—when making decisions. Collaborating with companies like Infosys helps us tap into that broader ecosystem, bringing diverse insights together,” the co-founder said. 

The indigenously built Drishti satellite will operate in space for five years. It will use both Synthetic Aperture Radar (SAR) and Multi-Spectral Instrument (MSI) sensors to capture high-resolution images of Earth. This technology is a first in the industry, and the company has already applied for a global patent.

Projected to cost only about 50-60% of what similar satellites previously launched for Mehta believes, “This cost efficiency is not only significant from a financial perspective but also in terms of use cases, as we are integrating two sensors at that price point. Such frugality is ingrained in India’s DNA.”

He added that the work took three years, starting at the IIT-Madras lab with proof-of-concept. “This innovative approach demonstrates that the two sensors can coexist and effectively capture data.”

Mehta said the goal has always been to make satellite imagery more accessible, not just to treat it as another data source. “We are currently focusing on a wide range of software applications. While we could just become a data player, we want industries across various sectors to recognize the inherent value that satellite data can provide,” the co-founder expressed.  

The funding also included participation from ideaForge and investments from Rainmatter, Navam Capital, Faad Capital, and Anicut Capital.

GalaxEye plans to use the funds to launch its first satellite, the ‘Drishti Mission’, and to further develop its multi-sensor payload technology.

“Majorly, the milestone is to put the satellite into orbit and also get a bunch of really experienced folks to build a satellite,” cofounder and chief executive Suyash Singh said.

The Bengaluru-based startup aims to launch the satellite, which is currently in development, around the middle of next year.

Founded in 2020, GalaxEye develops space technologies that monitor Earth and outer space. It also focuses on advancing space infrastructure for multi-planetary evolution.

“Anyone who needs infrastructure monitoring is one of our customers. But defence certainly is one of the largest customers that we’re going to look at in the future,” said Singh.  

The startup has partnered with companies like Ideaforge for drones and other industry players for satellite launches. This includes satellite platform systems, satellite assembly and testing, and launch segments.

“GalaxEye Space is entering the space backed by the success of 300+ flights with UAV SAR payload. We were looking for a strong partner at this stage to enable the smooth journey and can’t think of better partners,” he said.  

In 2023, India’s space technology sector secured $126 million in funding, up 7% from $118 million in 2022 and a 235% increase from $37.6 million in 2021. So far in 2024, the sector has raised $10.8 million, according to data intelligence platform Tracxn.

Commenting on the investment, Krishnakumar Natarajan, managing partner at Mela Ventures, said, “The MSI/SAR technology can help defence, maritime, insurance, and agriculture with real-time visibility and significantly reduce their response time. We look forward to being part of the journey and excited to see the ‘Drishti Mission’ satellite reach space.”

“We have been proud supporters of GalaxEye from the beginning and believe in their vision to transform space technology. With this new round of funding, we are excited to continue our partnership and witness the impactful advancements they will bring to the market,” said Vishesh Rajaram, managing partner at Speciale Invest. 

In her budget speech Tuesday, Sitharaman described the fund as the government’s “continued emphasis on expanding the space economy by five times in the next 10 years”. 

Invest India, the government’s investment promotion agency estimates that the Indian space economy will be worth $13 billion by 2025.

The minister did not provide details on which entity will establish the fund or the specifics of the investment process.

The fund would make equity investments more accessible for new entrepreneurs at the venture capital stage, said Pawan K Goenka, chairman of the Indian National Space Promotion and Authorisation Centre (IN-SPACe), the private space sector regulator. “At IN-SPACe, we look forward to supporting the growth of the space economy and nurturing an enabling ecosystem for NGEs (non-government entities),” he added.

The Indian space ecosystem hosts a diverse range of startups, including Skyroot and Agnikul, which build launch vehicles, Digantara, Pixxel, and GalaxEye, which create satellites with unique payloads, and satellite data analytics firms like SatSure. All will benefit from increased government focus, said Ganapathy Subramaniam, veteran deep-tech investor and founding partner of Yali Capital.

Srinath Ravichandran, cofounder of space-tech startup Agnikul, called the announcement “wonderful news.” He believes it will encourage the emergence of larger players in the space startup ecosystem.

Chennai-based Agnikul Cosmos established India’s first private launchpad and mission control center at the Isro campus in the Satish Dhawan Space Centre, Sriharikota, in November 2022. It launched the world’s first rocket with a 3D-printed engine on May 30 this year.

“This fund will provide crucial financial support to innovative startups and companies… While we recognise that even larger funds will be needed as the sector grows, this is an excellent start and a vital stepping stone,” said Awais Ahmed, cofounder and chief executive of Pixxel. 

The new fund will also enhance the benefits from changes in foreign direct investments for space startups notified in April this year, said Vishesh Rajaram, managing partner at venture capital firm Speciale Invest.

The government now allows 74% FDI for satellite manufacturing, up to 49% for launch vehicles, and 100% for manufacturing components and systems, all under the automatic route.

GalaxEye’s CEO, Suyash Singh, said that the company tested its synthetic aperture radar (SAR) technology. They conducted the test using a subscale high-altitude pseudo-satellite (HAPS) developed by the National Aerospace Laboratories (NAL).

HAPS are high-flying drones that operate in the stratosphere, offering extended aerial surveillance. Using solar energy and advanced batteries, these platforms can stay aloft for long periods.

“At the stratosphere, SAR is a technology for all-weather, all-time imaging overcoming the challenge of cloud cover, which restricts traditional electro-optical cameras,” Singh said. 

SAR technology has potential beyond defense, including environmental monitoring and disaster management. An NAL spokesperson stated that while initial tests are promising, further tests are needed before practical deployment.

“There is a platform between satellite and drones, which flies at an altitude of 18 to 20 km, which was also recently tested by some of the companies such as NAL and NewSpace (aerospace and defence R&D company), which is where we tested our SAR on HAPS quite successfully,” Singh said. 

HAPS hover at an altitude of 18 km, providing long-duration surveillance and monitoring, beneficial for national security, defense, and disaster management, such as flood response. NAL provided the platform for sensor testing.

Regarding investment, Singh mentioned that SAR technology requires 50%-60% of the cost of satellite-based SAR, without revealing exact figures.

“For domestic purposes, it can be used to monitor the state’s agriculture, other economic activities and disasters. One of the primary users of this technology will be the government. We have had a range of discussions with different people. The government would want to look at it more seriously when they get to know that we’ve tested it on a subscale prototype level. There is interest but at an early stage today,” he said. 

Aircraft typically fly at three to eight km altitude and can stay aloft for two to three hours. In contrast, HAPS can remain at the same spot for seven days, using solar power during the day and batteries at night. HAPS can only carry small, lightweight payloads. The SAR was miniaturized to less than 10 kg.

Google said its decision was in response to global business and government authorities’ calls for increased sustainability efforts, which its Earth Engine can facilitate.

One of the largest, publicly accessible databases of Earth observation data is the Google Earth Engine. The latter provides a constant and nearly real-time feed of Earth-imaging data to individuals who have access to the platform by scrolling a stream of Earth observation imagery from various satellites placed in orbit around Earth as well as other imagery resources. When combined with geospatial cloud computing platforms built into the Google Earth Engine, these data provide analytics and insights on a wide range of regional issues, including climate information, assessments of the likelihood and effects of natural disasters, and the control of diseases across different regions, and more.

This, according to Google, will assist businesses and governments worldwide, who can now monitor target forest sections or other critical locations and take appropriate action. Using Google Earth Engine, SC Johnson, a US-based global consumer chemicals company, has already launched a test project to create predictive models of mosquito populations worldwide. These models predicted which regions of the world may have the greatest concentration of the disease vector shortly using existing mosquito breeding patterns and more than one billion data points produced by Google Earth Engine.

The liberalization of geospatial imagery data worldwide, including in India, has given many commercial operators in space the opportunity to provide comparable satellite imagery and analytics to governmental entities and private businesses on Earth.

For instance, the private Indian space technology startup Pixxel will provide customers with hyperspectral imagery and image-based data analytics for actionable insights on climate change, sustainability, agroforestry, and defence applications. Pixxel launched its first satellite, “Shakuntala,” in April this year as a secondary payload aboard a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket.

GalaxEye, an Indian space-tech firm developing a platform for data analytics based on satellite images, is anticipated to launch in 2023 and provide satellite data to organizations and governments operating in the insurance, mining, and disaster management industries among others.

Google’s Earth Engine data, which is now accessible to businesses and governments, will be a significant competitor for such private operators. However, Google has guaranteed that, at least soon, access to the Earth Engine will continue to be accessible for non-profit organizations and academia.