Spacetech Startup GalaxEye Space Raises Funding To Launch Satellite For Earth Observation

Spacetech startup GalaxEye Space has raised $3.5 Mn in a seed funding round led by Speciale Invest. The funding round also saw the participation of Artha India Ventures, Veda VC, Anicut Capital, Upsparks and angel investors Nithin Kamath (Zerodha founder), Prashant Pitti (EaseMyTrip founder), Abhishek Goyal (Tracxn founder) and Ganpathy Subramaniam (partner at Celesta Capital).

The earth observation startup said that the fresh funding will help bolster hiring talent and accelerate the launch of the world’s first multi-sensor satellite for earth observation.

Before this, the spacetech startup had raised an undisclosed amount in a pre-seed funding round led by Speciale Invest in May 2021.

GalaxEye was founded by Denil Chawda, Kishan Thakkar, Pranit Mehta, Rakshit Bhatt, Satyanarayanan Chakravarthy and Suyash Singh, a group of entrepreneurs emerging from Avishkar Hyperloop, in 2020. The team was brought together by global competitions organised by Elon Musk’s SpaceX.

The startup provides multi-sensor imagery via satellites, providing insights by bringing imaging data from space. GalaxEye can provide all-weather imaging at all times without atmospheric interference. The technology the startup uses also enables it to generate images with extremely high resolution using a small satellite constellation.

The constellation is being built presently and will deliver global coverage in under 12 hours once it is operational. GalaxEye Space’s funding round also marked the beginning of commercialisation with its customers across the US, Europe and Africa.

“We are truly the first Indian space startup incorporated in India to build an imaging satellite and we are committed to accelerating technological innovation in India for the world,” said Singh, cofounder and CEO of GalaxEye Space. “I believe this is possible today with the enormous support available from ISRO, government and our global partners.”

Singh added that next year is an important one for the startup as GalaxEye’s constellation is set to be fully operational by then. The spacetech startup is also looking for additional funding of around $15-$25 Mn in 2023 to add more satellites to its constellation.

“This investment aligns with our vision of backing visionary founders with disruptive companies to solve global problems via tech innovations,” said Vishesh Rajaram, managing partner at Speciale Invest.

GalaxEye has already signed partnerships and commercial contracts with several leading organisations in the spacetech ecosystem, including the US-based space software provider Antaris. 

The startup plans to expand its partnerships and customer base in the coming months and has submitted a proposal to IN-SPACe seeking support from ISRO.

India’s spacetech sector has taken huge strides this year, with Skyroot Aerospace becoming the first Indian startup to launch a rocket into space. Besides, Agnikul Cosmos built its launchpad and mission control centre this year, while Pixxel launched its third hyperspectral satellite.

According to an Inc42 report, India’s commercial spacetech segment is estimated to reach $77 Bn in size by 2030.