India’s first space tech unicorn emerges as Skyroot gears up for orbital launch

Skyroot Aerospace has officially become India's inaugural space tech unicorn, securing $60 million in fresh funding just before its first orbital launch of the Vikram-1 rocket, scheduled for the upcoming weeks. This latest investment round, which values the Hyderabad-based startup at $1.1 billion prior to this investment, saw significant contributions of approximately $50 million in primary equity led by Sherpalo Ventures and GIC, alongside around $10 million in structured debt through BlackRock-affiliated funds. As the company gears up for what will be the first orbital launch by a private Indian entity, the Vikram-1 rocket was dispatched to India’s spaceport located on the southern island of Sriharikota in April. Skyroot aims for a launch in June, having successfully completed flight qualification tests and initiated integration and launch preparations. Founded in 2018 by former engineers from the Indian Space Research Organization (ISRO), Pawan Kumar Chandana and Naga Bharath Daka, Skyroot is focused on building small satellite launch rockets that can compete with U.S. counterparts like Rocket Lab and Firefly Aerospace. The Vikram-1 is designed to transport payloads weighing up to 350 kilograms (approximately 772 pounds) into low Earth orbit. This new valuation marks a significant increase from the $500 million valuation the company achieved during its prior funding round in 2023, reflecting a growing interest from global investors in India's burgeoning private space sector. Notable participants in the funding round included Playbook Partners, Arkam Ventures, and the founders of Greenko Group. Additionally, Ram Shriram, founder of Sherpalo Ventures and board member at Alphabet, will be joining Skyroot’s board of directors. While Skyroot has not disclosed specific revenue figures or details on customer backlog, it indicated a robust demand for dedicated launches from small satellite operators, with approximately one-third of this demand coming from within India and the remainder from international clients. The company first gained attention in November 2022 with the successful launch of Vikram-S, marking India’s first privately developed rocket launch. The newly acquired capital will be instrumental in scaling up manufacturing capabilities, enhancing the frequency of Vikram-1 launches, and supporting the development of Vikram-2, a heavier-lift launch vehicle projected to debut in 2027. Vikram-2 is being designed as a one-ton-class vehicle featuring a cryogenic stage, broadening Skyroot's capacity to handle more complex satellite missions and enabling it to compete in the expanding global market for small satellite launches. As India aims to increase its share of the global space economy by opening the sector to private enterprises, Skyroot’s emergence symbolizes a shift towards leveraging lower manufacturing and launch costs. Currently, India’s space economy is valued at $8.4 billion and is expected to rise to $44 billion by 2033, with nearly 400 space-tech startups identified by government estimates as of early 2026. The impending Vikram-1 mission is part of India's broader strategy to enhance commercial launch capabilities, complementing the efforts of the state-operated ISRO, which has experienced challenges in recent missions, including two consecutive failures. Reforms initiated since 2020 have facilitated private firms' access to ISRO resources and participation in comprehensive space activities, catalyzing the growth of startups across various sectors including launch systems, satellites, and propulsion technologies.