India’s private space sector has entered a new phase as Skyroot Aerospace raised nearly $60 million in a fresh funding round, becoming India’s first spacetech unicorn with a pre-money valuation of $1.1 billion. 

The funding round was co-led by Sherpalo Ventures and Singapore’s sovereign wealth fund GIC, with participation from funds managed by BlackRock, the founders of Greenko Group, Arkam Ventures, Playbook Partners, Shanghvi Family Office and other investors. 

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As part of the investment, Ram Shriram, founder and managing partner at Sherpalo Ventures and a board member at Alphabet, will join Skyroot’s board. 

With this round, the company has raised a total of $160 million to date.

The latest funding comes at a critical time for the company as it prepares for the maiden orbital launch of Vikram-1, which the company describes as India’s first privately developed orbital rocket. The launch is expected in the coming weeks. 

“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,” said Pawan Kumar Chandana, co-founder and CEO of Skyroot Aerospace. 

The company said the capital will be used to increase the cadence of Vikram-1 launches, scale up manufacturing operations and accelerate development of Vikram-2, a one-tonne class launch vehicle powered by an advanced cryogenic stage. 

Skyroot has emerged as one of the most closely watched startups in India’s fast-growing private space ecosystem since it launched Vikram-S in 2022, becoming the first private Indian company to send a rocket to space. 

“I've believed in the Skyroot team since the early days, and that conviction has only deepened as the team marches forward to the launchpad with Vikram-1, India’s first private orbital-class rocket,” said Ram Shriram, founder and managing partner at Sherpalo Ventures. 

“Access to space is one of the key challenges of our time. Skyroot is building the foundational infrastructure for that future with the best cost-to-performance ratio in the orbital-launch industry, and what the team has achieved is remarkable,” he added. 

The company said it has now raised nearly $100 million from global investors including GIC and Temasek.