India’s space economy may grow 5x to $45 billion by 2030. Who is leading the boom?

India’s private space industry is moving rapidly from prototypes to commercial execution, putting a cluster of rocket, satellite and surveillance startups at the centre of a market the government expects to expand fivefold to as much as $45 billion by 2030.

The space economy is projected to grow from about $8.4 billion in 2023 to $40–45 billion by the end of the decade and reach $100 billion by 2040, according to a Jefferies report citing government estimates. India’s space startup ecosystem, meanwhile, has expanded from just one company in 2014 to more than 400 in 2026.

Skyroot Aerospace, Pixxel, Agnikul Cosmos and Digantara are emerging as the leading private players as India opens a sector that operated under a predominantly government-led model for nearly six decades.


Skyroot has raised approximately $160 million, the highest among the startups identified by Jefferies. It became the first private Indian company to place payloads into orbit following the successful launch of Vikram-1 in July 2026, marking a pivotal shift for an industry that is beginning to demonstrate commercial capabilities.

Pixxel, which has raised approximately $95 million, operates a constellation of high-resolution hyperspectral Earth-observation satellites designed to produce precise spectral measurements of the Earth’s surface. The company has also secured a NASA contract for commercial datasets.

Agnikul Cosmos follows with funding of about $76 million. It became the first company globally to develop a rocket powered by a single-piece, 3D-printed semi-cryogenic engine.

Digantara, with approximately $65 million in funding, is targeting the increasingly important space surveillance market. It has launched SCOT, a commercial space surveillance mission, and developed a patented LiDAR-based system for detecting orbital debris. The company is also expanding into space-based missile defence technology.

The progress signals that India’s private space ecosystem is moving beyond early stage innovation. Companies are launching vehicles, operating satellite constellations, securing international contracts and developing technologies spanning propulsion, orbital surveillance and Earth observation.

More than a rocket race

The emerging space opportunity is spread across several layers of the value chain rather than being concentrated only in launch vehicles.

Bellatrix Aerospace, which has raised approximately $34 million, has demonstrated indigenous green propulsion technology in orbit and is developing in-space mobility solutions.

SatSure has raised about $29 million and operates in downstream satellite data and analytics. It is part of the IN-SPACe Earth observation public-private partnership consortium alongside Pixxel, Dhruva Space and PierSight. The consortium will build India’s first commercial Earth observation constellation.

Dhruva Space, with funding of approximately $28 million, is developing capabilities across satellites and ground infrastructure. It has received IN-SPACe authorisation to offer ground stations as a service and is also part of the Earth observation consortium.

EtherealX has raised around $28 million and is developing a reusable medium lift launch vehicle aimed at providing lower cost and more frequent access to space. GalaxEye, which has secured about $24 million, has launched OptoSAR, a privately built Earth observation satellite.

Together, the nine startups highlighted by Jefferies have raised approximately $539 million. Cumulative private investment across the broader Indian space startup ecosystem had reached about $600 million by FY26.

Policy reforms unlock private capital

The industry’s rapid expansion follows the government’s decision in 2020 to open the space value chain to private participation. The Indian Space Policy 2023 subsequently established the broader framework for private sector involvement, technology development and international collaboration.

The reforms gave the Indian National Space Promotion and Authorisation Centre, or IN-SPACe, responsibility as the sector’s autonomous single-window agency. It authorises and promotes space activities, facilitates access to ISRO infrastructure and expertise, and streamlines approvals.

IN-SPACe facilitated $150 million of investment into Indian space startups during 2025, indicating growing investor interest in the sector.

Government initiatives include a ₹1,000 crore Venture Capital Fund, a ₹500 crore Technology Adoption Fund and the IN-SPACe Seed Fund Scheme. These programmes are intended to improve access to capital and support the commercialisation of domestically developed technologies.

India has also liberalised FDI rules across the industry. The automatic route permits FDI of up to 74% in satellite manufacturing and operations and up to 49% in launch vehicles and spaceports. Manufacturing of satellite, ground segment and user segment components and sub-systems allows up to 100% FDI through the automatic route.

ISRO technology moves to industry

NewSpace India Ltd., ISRO’s commercial arm, is helping move government developed technology into private industry. It has enabled more than 70 technology transfer agreements covering technologies developed by ISRO.

NSIL has also launched 141 satellites for 138 international and three Indian customers. Its mandate includes commercial production of space systems, private participation in PSLV manufacturing, satellite services and the marketing of space products and spin-off technologies.

The private sector push builds on India’s record of cost-efficient space engineering. India’s FY26 space budget of approximately $1.4 billion was a fraction of NASA’s $25 billion FY25 budget and the European Space Agency’s $8.7 billion budget for 2025.

India’s Mars Orbiter Mission, or Mangalyaan, cost about $74 million, compared with reported lifecycle costs of more than $671 million for NASA’s Maven Mars mission. Chandrayaan-3 achieved a soft landing near the Moon’s south pole at an estimated cost of approximately $72 million.

Mission costs are not directly comparable because objectives and payload complexity differ. Still, India’s ability to build space capabilities with relatively limited capital provides a foundation that private companies can potentially carry into commercial markets.

The next phase of India’s space expansion will depend on whether its startups can convert that engineering advantage into repeat launches, global contracts and scalable satellite services. Skyroot’s orbital launch and Pixxel’s NASA contract suggest that transition has already begun.