Can Indrajaal Build A ₹100 Cr Business Protecting India’s Skies?

by · Inc42

SUMMARY

  • Hyderabad-based defence-tech startup Indrajaal is looking beyond counter-drone systems to build an AI-powered operating system for autonomous airspace, while scaling rapidly with ₹100 Cr revenue in FY26 and targeting ₹300 Cr+ this fiscal
  • As India's drone ecosystem expands from defence to commercial applications, startups like Indrajaal are betting that managing autonomous airspace will become the next critical layer of digital infrastructure
  • Indrajaal has deployed its technology with defence forces, is expanding into critical infrastructure and urban airspace management, and is raising a ₹420 Cr Series A to fuel growth
  • Added to Saved Stories in Login

In September 2019, a swarm of low-cost drones launched by Houthi rebels struck Saudi Aramco’s oil processing facilities, knocking out nearly half of Saudi Arabia’s oil production. The attack sent shockwaves across the world, exposing how inexpensive flying machines could bring critical infrastructure to a standstill.

Back home, the founder of Indrajaal, Kiran Raju, was closely observing everything, including a rise in drone incursions along India’s borders. He foresaw that Indian security agencies would soon need technology to detect hostile drones and stop them before they could launch an attack.

Indrajaal is looking to tackle this growing threat through its AI-powered counter-drone technology designed to detect, track and neutralise hostile drones, protecting military installations and critical infrastructure from aerial threats. Founded in 2020, the defence tech startup is developing an advanced, AI-powered counter-drone systems that combine proprietary hardware, computer vision and machine learning. It has so far raised about $5.5 Mn in external funding from the likes of India Accelerator and Finvolve. 

The founder’s journey into autonomous robotics began long before Indrajaal. After studying at Carnegie Mellon University, he founded Grene Robotics in 2006 to develop autonomous technologies for defence applications. As drones became cheaper and more advanced, he spun off Indrajaal from Grene Robotics to develop systems capable of detecting and countering aerial threats.

Inside Indrajaal’s Defence Tech Capabilities 

Traditional counter-drone systems typically rely on standalone technologies to jam or shoot down hostile drones. However, this approach becomes less effective when friendly and hostile drones operate in the same airspace.

Indrajaal addresses this limitation through SkyOS, its AI-powered platform that brings together multiple detection and defence systems.