Top News

GalaxEye became the first Indian startup to secure a US patent satellite imaging technology

The patent protects GalaxEye’s proprietary OptoSAR technology which enables simultaneous all-weather, day-and-night Earth observation from optical and SAR sensors

GalaxEye launched Mission Drishti, the world’s first imaging satellite using OptoSAR, in May, and plans to scale up to a 30-satellite constellation over the next five years

In a first for an Indian spacetech startup, GalaxyEye has got a US patent for satellite imaging technology, securing its landmark intellectual property that had already been patented in India.

The patent covers the core architecture behind the startup’s proprietary OptoSAR technology, which synchronises optical and synthetic aperture radar (SAR) sensors to collect spatially and temporally aligned earth observation data simultaneously from a single satellite over day and night.

“This patented technology enables us to serve the global markets and provide weather agnostic imaging capabilities across sectors like defence, agriculture, insurance, disaster response and more,” said GalaxEye founder and CEO Suyash Singh.

The grant of the patent comes on the heels of GalaxEye’s successful launch of its OptoSAR satellite Mission Drishti, its first satellite, back in May. Drishti, weighing around 190 kg, is India’s largest privately built earth observation satellite and the world’s first imaging satellite using OptoSAR.

However, GalaxEye said it lost communication with Drishti in July after an anomaly linked to a geomagnetic solar storm. It attributed the setback’s root cause to radiation effects from the event that likely impacted a critical onboard system.

During its active operating phase over a few weeks, GalaxEye said that Mission Drishti successfully validated critical technologies, operational processes, and infrastructure required to design, build, launch, and operate advanced space systems.

The startup is now targeting the launch of two new OptoSAR satellites within the next two years while expanding its in-house capabilities to further strengthen quality, reliability, and execution.

Founded in 2021 by Singh, Denil Chawda, Kishan Thakkar, Pranit Mehta, and Rakshit Bhatt, GalaxEye is building multi-sensor earth observation satellites. Last month, it acquired spacecraft engineering company StarOps to deepen its in-house satellite engineering capabilities.

It is planning further launches with a target of scaling towards a 30-satellite constellation over the next five years. It claims to have a growing pipeline of domestic and international customers across sectors.

The IIT Madras-incubated startup has raised $26.9 Mn in funding to date from investors like Speciale Invest, Mela Ventures, Rainmatter, and Anicut Capital. Most recently, it raised a ₹44 Cr tranche in March as part of its ongoing Series A round, Inc42 learnt.

Zooming out, the involvement of private players in the space ecosystem has been deepening over the past few years.

Investors, too, are queuing up to back spacetech startups. According to Inc42 data, the funding in the sector surged 94% to $157 Mn in 2025 from $81 Mn in 2024, with the broader market set to cross $77 Bn by 2030.