Xovian Aerospace Nets $2.5 Mn To Build AI-Powered RF Satellite Infra

Deeptech startup Xovian Aerospace has raised $2.5 Mn (INR 22 Cr) in its pre-seed funding round co-led by Piper Serica and Turbostar. The round also saw participation from Inflection Point Ventures (IPV) and Eaglewings Ventures.

The Bengaluru-based startup plans to deploy the capital to expand its engineering team and launch its multi-band radio frequency (RF) payload aboard Indian Space Research Organisation’s (ISRO) unnamed launch vehicle.

Subsequently, the startup plans to develop and deploy its own nanosatellite.

Founded in 2019 by Ankit Bhateja and Raghav Sharma, Xovian is building an AI-powered “RF intelligence infrastructure”. Under this full-stack approach, it plans to develop proprietary RF satellites and AI-powered “intelligence” that will convert RF data into real-time insights.

The startup claims to have indigenously built its radio-based hardware, which will now be deployed in space. Since its inception, Xovian has been working on the development of the hardware with the help of grants received from the Department of Telecommunications, Department of Science and Technology and IIM Udaipur.

Prior to this funding round, the startup received a total grant of $300K, cofounder Bhateja told Inc42.

Talking about the use case of its tech, Bhateja said that real-time data can be used by multiple industries, including maritime, aviation, BFSI, defense and climate tech, to monitor the movement of their assets and get insights about local geographical challenges.

Xovian plans to roll out initial customer pilots and data trials starting 2026. The startup is in talks to onboard enterprises across Southeast Asia, India and Middle East for the pilot next year, Bhateja added.

India’s Deeptech Brigade

Xovian is a part of India’s deeptech ecosystem, which has grown by leaps and bounds in the past few years on the back of a healthy government push and increasing investor confidence.

Last month, the Union cabinet also approved INR 1 Lakh Cr corpus to fuel research and development in sunrise sectors, part of which is expected to go to the deeptech sector. Despite a long gestation period and high capex requirements, more and more VCs and PEs are lining up to back homegrown deeptech startups on the back of Centre’s indigenous pitch, abundant tech talent and the big market opportunity.

Last month, VC firm Yali Capital closed its maiden deeptech-focussed fund at INR 893 Cr. In the same month, semiconductor design-focussed GenAI startup Maieutic Semiconductor also raised $4.15 Mn in its seed funding round co-led by Endiya Partners and Exfinity Venture Partners.

Quantum computing startup QpiAI also bagged $32 Mn in its Series A funding round, co-led by Avataar Ventures and National Quantum Mission, recently.

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