Spacetech startup Agnikul raises $26.7 Mn in Series B

Spacetech startup AgniKul Cosmos has raised Rs 200 crore ($26.7 million) in its Series B round from Celesta Capital, Rocketship.vc, Artha Venture Fund, Artha Select Fund, and Mayfield India. Existing investors such as Pi Ventures and Speciale Invest also participated in the round.

This round takes the total funding raised by the Chennai-based startup to $40 million, including a $11 million Series A round in March 2021.

Agnikul plans to utilize the capital to scale its existing technology towards commercialization, as well as invest in key facilities such as mobile launchpads and other test rigs, the company said in a press release.

“...Our focus is shifting from singular rocket launches to a strategic approach aimed at scaling. We're considering how to scale not just for one or a few rocket launches, but for the next 25 or even 50 launches,” said Srinath Ravichandran, co-founder and CEO of Agnikul.

Founded in 2017, Agnikul is building India’s first private small satellite rocket, Agnibaan, that will be capable of carrying up to 100 kg of payload to low Earth orbits up to 700 km. The vehicle has the capability for a plug-and-play engine configuration that is configurable to match the mission's needs precisely. 

According to the startup data intelligence platform, TheKredible, Ravichandran has the largest stakeholding in the company 14% stake. Head to TheKredible for Skyroot’s complete shareholding pattern.

While Agnikul did not disclose its latest valuation, it was valued at around $180 million during Series B round, as per TheKredible’s estimates.

Skyroot, one of the closest competitors of Agnikul, has raised $67 million to date and it was last valued at $165 million in September 2022. Agnikul Cosmos also counts Pixxel, Bellatrix, GlaxEye, Dhruva, Vesta Space, Digantara, and InspeCity as its competitors.

Digantara raised $10 million in Series A1 funding in June from Peak XV Partners and Kalaari Capital whereas Pixxel raised $36 million in a Series B round from new investors including Google. Satsure and PierSight raised their new round in August and September respectively.

While Agnikul is yet to file its FY23 numbers, the startup was in pre-revenue stage as of FY22 when it recorded negligible revenue with Rs 9 crore loss. Five year old Skyroot also posted a revenue of Rs 40 lakh while its losses touched Rs 55 crore in FY23.