Hyderabad: BRS working president KT Rama Rao hailed the historic announcement of Skyroot Aerospace reaching a $1 billion valuation, terming it a defining success story for Telangana’s industrial and innovation policies. For the first time, an Indian space-tech startup has entered the “Unicorn Club,” a feat KTR attributed to the robust, world-class ecosystem meticulously built in Hyderabad over the last decade.
“This is a proud moment for our startup ecosystem and a testament to the boundless potential of Indian talent and ambition,” KTR stated. In a statement, the former IT minister emphasized that Skyroot’s journey, from its early days as an idea to becoming a global player, is a direct result of the state’s vision to foster deep-tech innovation through platforms such as T-Hub. Skyroot Aerospace was among the early startups nurtured at T-Hub, one of the world’s largest innovation campuses.
KTR noted that the “phenomenal milestone” achieved in such a short span serves as a blueprint for how government-led enablement can accelerate private enterprise. “It’s truly inspiring that Hyderabad-based Skyroot, incubated at T-Hub, has reached this milestone. This success belongs to the entire ecosystem we have cultivated in Telangana,” he said.
Acknowledging the erstwhile government’s role in their trajectory, Pawan Kumar Chandana, Co-founder and CEO of Skyroot Aerospace, highlighted the impact of the state’s infrastructure and thanked KTR. “T-Hub has been a great enabler in building an incredible startup ecosystem in Hyderabad for the world,” Chandana said. He credited the collaborative environment and the “plug-and-play” nature of Telangana’s innovation hubs for allowing the company to focus on complex engineering and rapid scaling.
The rise of Skyroot Aerospace to unicorn status is expected to trigger a new wave of investments in the aerospace and defence sectors within the state. With Hyderabad already serving as a hub for global tech giants and defence manufacturers, this milestone solidifies the city’s reputation as the “Startup Capital of India” for hardware and frontier technologies. As Skyroot continues to develop its Vikram series of launch vehicles, the success reinforces the importance of supporting homegrown talent that makes both the state and the nation proud on the global stage.
