BENGALURU: The India-Pakistan conflict has now put the focus on the country’s defence tech and drone start-ups. Venture Capitalists are also showing growing interest in investing in these companies.
According to data sourced from Tracxn, the total equity funding raised by drone start-ups in India is $414 million so far, and there are 487 such start-ups in the country, which include ideaForge, Zen Technologies, DroneAcharya, Garuda Aerospace and Marut Drones, among others.
Out of these, 132 start-ups are funded, with 28 having secured Series A+ funding. Many of these drones are used for civilian applications and infrastructure inspection. Start-ups such as ideaForge are into dual-use categories — civil and defence.
Some of these start-ups are also into defence tech. Tracxn data suggests that there are 136 military tech start-ups in India including Newspace Research and Technologies, Tata Advanced Systems, among others.
Venture Catalysts, which has already invested in companies like Garuda Aerospace, Redwing, Skye Air, Tech Eagle, and Nxtqube, among others, said they are committed to increasing their investments in the defence sector in the coming years.
Apoorva Ranjan Sharma, Co-Founder and MD of Venture Catalysts, said the government must equip itself with the latest technologies, as modern warfare is now fought strategically with advanced technology rather than just physically.