The round was led by the Rajiv Dadlani Group, with participation from Equanimity Investments, Venture Catalysts, and other HNIs
Optimized Electrotech will use the capital to scale product innovations, and drive business development in the aerospace and defence sectors
Prior to the current fundraise, Optimized Electrotech raised $2.8 Mn across four funding rounds from multiple investors
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Deeptech startup Optimized Electrotech on Tuesday (March 14) said it has raised INR 20 Cr as part of its pre-Series B funding round led by Rajiv Dadlani Group. The funding round also saw participation from Equanimity Investments, existing investor Venture Catalysts, a few family offices and other high net-worth individuals (HNIs).
In a statement, Optimized Electrotech said it will use the fresh funds to design state-of-the-art intelligent long-range surveillance systems, scale product innovations, and drive business development in the aerospace and defence sectors.
Founded in 2017 by Sandeep Shah, Anil Yekkala, Dharin Shah, Kuldeep Saxena, and Purvi Shah, Optimized Electrotech offers surveillance solutions for strategic and commercial buyers. Its products work on a wide range of the electromagnetic spectrum and are equipped with various types of optics that enable applications including surveillance for smart cities, satellite-based imaging, perimeter surveillance, border surveillance, aircraft tracking, airport security, and more.
The startup claims it infuses AI into surveillance, and that its indigenously designed-and-developed surveillance platforms allow governments, defence services, paramilitary forces, and mining corporations to respond to threats such as unauthorised drone attacks.
Highlighting the importance of surveillance for nation’s defence, Sandeep Shah, cofounder and MD of Optimized Electrotech, said, “Conventional surveillance has been limited to post-facto analysis with human operators spending time and efforts in threat discovery. Our intelligent surveillance platforms bridge this gap, by providing real-time, actionable intelligence to our security forces.”
Prior to this funding round, the startup had raised $2.8 Mn in total in four funding rounds.
Optimized Electrotech has applied for four patents so far, of which two have already been granted. It directly competes with startups like EyeROV and Big Bang Boom Solutions.
Optimized Electrotech is among a large number of defence startups which have sprung up over the last few years amidst the government’s focus on promoting startup, and procurement of defence equipment from domestic startups and companies.
The Ministry of Defence aims to achieve a turnover of $25 Bn in aerospace and defence manufacturing by 2025, including $5 Bn in exports.
In the Union Budget 2023, Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman enhanced the allocation for defence to INR 5.9 Lakh Cr. Optimized Electrotech MD said that the government has allocated about INR 1 Lakh Cr for procurement from domestic industry, and this would create more opportunities for the startup.
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