Garuda Aerospace Raises $22 Mn In Series A Round The round—the largest-ever in the drone sector, according to the Chennai-based startup—was led by VC firm SphitiCap, which invested $12 million, and saw participation from other investors across India, UAE and Singapore

By Soumya Duggal

Opinions expressed by Entrepreneur contributors are their own.

You're reading Entrepreneur India, an international franchise of Entrepreneur Media.

Agnishwar Jayaprakash, founder & CEO, Garuda Aerospace

Drone manufacturer Garuda Aerospace has raised $22 million in series A funding—the largest-ever in the drone sector, according to the Chennai-based startup.

The round was led by VC firm SphitiCap, which invested $12 million, and saw participation from other investors across India, UAE and Singapore. The acquired funds will be utilized to scale up and expand Garuda Aerospace's operation, said a statement. A part of the funds will be used for R&D, thus accelerating the development of building advanced drone solutions for the armed forces in collaboration with global companies for the defence and aerospace sectors, and the rest will be used for the skilling and training of drone pilots to help create employment while deepening the startup's footprints in Tier II and III cities, added the statement.

Garuda further plans to enhance its drones with payload capacities, endurance, quality sensors and data embedding with more technology solutions. Currently operational across India, the comapny is looking to achieve dominance in rural areas and bring fast delivery, reduced costs and improved accessibility through drone technology.

"Garuda Aerospace aims to sell 25,000 drones in the next 18 months and is looking forward to exporting 10,000 drones to about 100 countries in the next 15 months. After my experience at Davos 2023, it was clear that Garuda Aerospace has the potential to scale globally by manufacturing more 'Make in India' drones and will help India to become the drone hub of the world by 2030," said Agnishwar Jayaprakash, founder and CEO, Garuda Aerospace.

"Garuda Aerospace's developments in the drone sector are one to watch out for. Given the evolving preferences and horizontal expansion with the usage of drones in several sectors, there is a vision of promising growth beneficial for both companies. With this, drones will be playing a major role in nearly every sector in the future," added Pallav Kumar Singh, managing partner, SphitiCap.

Aiming to become the country's first drone unicorn startup, Garuda Aerospace claims to currently have a fleet of 400 drones and a well-trained team of over 500 pilots across 26 different cities across India. Former Indian cricket team captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni is an investor and Garuda's brand ambassador.

Soumya Duggal

Former Feature Writer

Business News

Over 1,300 Google Employees Have Signed a New Petition Asking For Job Security

Google laid off thousands of employees in the past two years, which has left some employees feeling insecure about keeping their jobs.

Business News

OpenAI Says AI Industry Disruptor DeepSeek May Have Copied Its Work as Rivals Race to Catch Up

Competitor Alibaba, meanwhile, says it has developed a model that's even smarter than DeepSeek.

Business News

Barbara Corcoran Says She Doesn't Look at Resumes: 'Always Hire Attitude Over Experience'

If you think you need a strong resume to work with real estate pioneer Barbara Corcoran, think again.

News and Trends

MSME Ministry Unveils TEAM Initiative with INR 277.35 Cr Budget to Empower Small Businesses

The programme aims to onboard 5 lakh MSMEs onto the Open Network for Digital Commerce (ONDC), fostering greater inclusivity by targeting 50% women-led enterprises.

Employee Experience & Recruiting

Employees Only Meet Expectations When They Know What's Expected

Survey data reveals employees want managers to tell them how their work fits into company strategy but those conversations are the exception, not the norm.

Taxes

4 Tax Strategies Every High-Earning Entrepreneur Needs to Know for 2025

It is not a secret that many high-earning entrepreneurs feel shaken when tax season rolls around. The rules are constantly changing, and the stakes are high. Yet this upheaval also opens up exciting avenues to optimize your financial outcomes through proactive tax planning.