Skyroot Aerospace raises $60 million, becomes India’s first spacetech unicorn

Skyroot Aerospace has raised about $60 million at a pre-money valuation of $1.1 billion, making it the first spacetech unicorn.

The round was co-led by Sherpalo Ventures and GIC, a global institutional investor, with participation from other existing Skyroot investors, including the founders of Greenko Group and Arkam Ventures.

The founder of Sherpalo, Ram Shriram, a tech investor and a Board member of Alphabet Inc, will be joining Skyroot’s Board.

The new capital will enable Skyroot to establish a high cadence of Vikram-1 launches; scale up manufacturing; and develop Vikram-2 (a 1-tonne class launch vehicle powered by an advanced cryogenic stage), expanding the range of missions and customers it can serve.

The funding round comes as Skyroot readies Vikram-1, the country's first privately developed orbital rocket, for its maiden flight. Targeted to launch in the weeks following this announcement, Vikram-1 is designed to provide dedicated and customisable access to space for global satellite operators.

The upcoming mission builds on the company's 2022 mission — when it launched the country's first privately built rocket, Vikram-S.

“We at Skyroot are excited about the upcoming Vikram-1 launch, India's first private orbital rocket, marking a significant milestone both for India and the global space sector. This investment signals confidence from some of the world's most reputed investors in Skyroot," Pawan Kumar Chandana, Co-Founder & CEO, Skyroot Aerospace said.

Skyroot said Vikram-1 is designed to deploy small satellites of up to 350 kg to low Earth orbit. Built with an all-carbon composite structure and powered by in-house developed solid and liquid propulsion systems — including 3D-printed engines — the rocket is engineered for rapid manufacturing and high launch cadence. 

The company has raised nearly $100 million from marquee global investors, including GIC and Temasek.

Commenting on Skyroot's unicorn status, Lt. Gen. AK Bhatt (retd.), Director General, Indian Space Association (ISpA) said, “Skyroot Aerospace becoming India’s first space-tech unicorn marks a defining moment for the country’s private space ecosystem. This milestone is far more than a financial achievement; it is the symbolic coming-of-age of India’s space startup landscape and a powerful validation of the technological ingenuity, entrepreneurial ambition, and commercial agility that Indian companies now bring to the global space sector."

He said this achievement sends a strong signal to global investors that India has built a credible and innovation-driven space ecosystem capable of delivering world-class, cost-competitive, reliable, and on-demand space solutions. "As the industry looks ahead to the Vikram-1 orbital launch, this achievement will further strengthen investor confidence and accelerate India’s collective mission of securing a 10% share of the global space economy by 2033," he added.