Indian space startup Skyroot successfully test-launches orbital rocket, joining U.S. and China in private space race

Overview

GIC- and BlackRock-backed Indian space startup Skyroot is planning to begin commercial operations in 2027, following a successful test launch that places India among the elite group of nations with private orbital launch capability.

The Big Story

Global demand for satellite launches is rising, yet only a handful of rocket companies possess the capability to deliver payloads to orbit. Naga Bharath Daka, co-founder of Indian space tech startup Skyroot, is determined to seize the opportunity.

Skyroot will commence commercial operations in 2027 and plans to launch "one flight every month," Daka told CNBC. He added that after one more test flight later this year, the launches will be fully commercialized.

"We will be the most cost-competitive launch vehicle in this space [small payload], even before the economies of scale come into play," Daka said.

Cost competitiveness has long been a hallmark of India's space technology. The state-run Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) has previously executed Mars and Moon missions at a fraction of the cost incurred by Western nations. Both Skyroot co-founders, Daka and Pawan Kumar Chandana, are former ISRO employees.

Referring to Elon Musk's SpaceX, Daka noted that the company follows a "fail smarter and grow faster" strategy, which drives rapid technological progress but "burns a lot of cash." He emphasized that Skyroot "had to be ultra cautious with money," focusing on getting "the first time right."

Entering the Global Space Market

On Saturday at 11:30 a.m. Indian Standard Time, Skyroot successfully launched a test rocket carrying a 350-kilogram payload into low orbit. This milestone makes it the first Indian private company to achieve orbital space launch capability, joining the ranks of the United States and China.

Skyroot will compete in the sub-1,000 kg market against:

• U.S.-based startups: Rocket Lab, Firefly Aerospace, Astra Space
• Chinese private firms: i-Space, Galactic Energy, CAS Space

According to data from market intelligence firm Analysys Mason, the market size for the sub-1,000 kg category was $5 billion in 2025.

Why Small Launchers Matter

Small launchers address critical operational, strategic, and financial bottlenecks that large "bus lines" to space—such as bigger payload carriers like SpaceX—cannot handle.

"A small rocket acts like an orbit-on-demand taxi," explained Ujjwal Chaudhry, a partner at Analysys Mason.

Key advantages of small launchers include:

• Direct delivery: They deliver a single customer's payload directly to its precise location in space, unlike large launchers that drop payloads in approximate positions, requiring satellite operators to maneuver them into exact positions using internal fuel and time.
• Dedicated launch windows: Small satellites do not have to wait for "ridesharing" with larger satellite launches.

Despite the relatively small market size of $5 billion in 2025, the sector remains highly competitive with few operational players.

This is Priyanka Salve, writing to you from Singapore.

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