Speaker 1: Did you imagine that you will be actually launching rockets
Speaker 1: into space?
Speaker 2: Never? Never imagined you know, I'll get into rockets.
Speaker 1: Launching the first ever rocket into space. What was the
Speaker 1: experience like?
Speaker 2: Oh? Wow, I think it's probably the most fantastic experience
Speaker 2: of my life.
Speaker 3: Y rockets succeed and Y rockets fain.
Speaker 2: Bold, one bolt not working, some electrical connector snapping off,
Speaker 2: or some component not being built.
Speaker 1: Well, when you launched wikram s to space, what was
Speaker 1: the aim behind that?
Speaker 2: Space is a five hundred billion dollar business local the
Speaker 2: World Economic Forum. My estimate is that it is going
Speaker 2: to become one point eight trillion dollar economy by twenty
Speaker 2: thirty five.
Speaker 1: Where does the engineer stop thinking and where does the
Speaker 1: entrepreneurs start thinking?
Speaker 2: I look at business also as engineering. Have you gone
Speaker 2: to space yet?
Speaker 1: No?
Speaker 3: I don't know. There are very few people a couple
Speaker 3: of people you've gone from in it.
Speaker 2: So yeah, so that's exactly what it is. So space
Speaker 2: is not yet open for all. Know how much time
Speaker 2: it takes to go to space? No, make a guess, maybe.
Speaker 1: A few hours, just take ten minutes, ten minutes.
Speaker 2: Yeah, So for example, it took me one and a
Speaker 2: half hour to come here from the airport, yes, and
Speaker 2: so that space is closer.
Speaker 1: Hello and welcome. You're watching the Business Today podcast. I'm
Speaker 1: Sakshi Patra and today I take you with me to space. Well,
Speaker 1: india space story is changing faster than ever before. Until
Speaker 1: very recently, you would remember that all our space missions
Speaker 1: were entirely driven by the government.
Speaker 3: But off late things have changed.
Speaker 1: India's private startups have now started to build rockets and sending.
Speaker 3: Statellites to the space as well.
Speaker 1: And there is one company which is right at the
Speaker 1: center of this shift, and that company is sky Root Aerospace.
Speaker 1: This is the company that became the first ever startup
Speaker 1: company to have launched a rocket into space called wickram
Speaker 1: S back in the year twenty twenty two, and very recently,
Speaker 1: this is the same company that's become the first ever
Speaker 1: startup within space tech to become a unicorn as well.
Speaker 1: And to share with us the incredible journey of Skyroot
Speaker 1: Aerospace and to take us forward into a new orbit,
Speaker 1: we have with us a very special guest joining in.
Speaker 1: Let's welcome Paka, the co founder and CEE of Skyroot Aerospace.
Speaker 3: Welcome to your power.
Speaker 2: Thank you, pleasure to be here.
Speaker 3: Thank you so much.
Speaker 1: It's been a pleasure to have you with us, and
Speaker 1: it's an incredible story that you have. Truly give me
Speaker 1: an understanding. You started out being an engineer in Iit
Speaker 1: tell me what was it like. Did you ever dream
Speaker 1: then and did you imagine that you will be actually
Speaker 1: launching a company, starting a company that will be launching
Speaker 1: rockets into space, and that will become the first ever
Speaker 1: company to do so outside of the government in the country.
Speaker 2: Never never imagined, you know, I'll get into rockets. But
Speaker 2: I think destiny, you know, took me there. I think
Speaker 2: I'm really excited and very fortunate to be doing what
Speaker 2: I'm doing. And but but I wanted to build a
Speaker 2: company since childhood. That has been my dream. But never
Speaker 2: imagine that I get into building a rocket company. But yeah,
Speaker 2: so I think it's really exciting to be here.
Speaker 3: Absolutely, So tell me.
Speaker 1: You know, you also went on to Isro to become
Speaker 1: a scientist after I t so in fact.
Speaker 3: With you know, your co founder there at Isroe.
Speaker 1: I wanted to understand what came into your mind that
Speaker 1: you wanted to both leave a stable government job and
Speaker 1: probably step out to create something of your own at
Speaker 1: a time when private missions were barely existing in the country.
Speaker 2: Yeah. No, I think because I had an ambition to
Speaker 2: start a company since childhood. You always there's always that
Speaker 2: bug at the startup bug at the you know, at
Speaker 2: the back. But I was real, really super excited to
Speaker 2: be part of the space program. I was, you know,
Speaker 2: as part of the very exciting program, the India's largest
Speaker 2: rocket program at is STROW. And then, like you know,
Speaker 2: a one fine day has got a thought like if
Speaker 2: I can't we do this because really, really India has
Speaker 2: a very strong foundation for space thanks to SHROW, and
Speaker 2: the wide markets are opening up globally and it's growing
Speaker 2: at the fastest space. So I thought it was a
Speaker 2: phenomenal opportunity to start something. But we started at a
Speaker 2: time when there was no policy, there was no funding, environment,
Speaker 2: little nothing. We took the leap of faith.
Speaker 3: It's paying off absolutely, it is.
Speaker 1: I mean, launching the first ever rocket into space back
Speaker 1: in the year twenty twenty two, what was the experience Like.
Speaker 2: Oh wow, I think it's probably the most fantastic experience
Speaker 2: of my life. You know, I was right there the
Speaker 2: mission control before the rocket takes off, and I could
Speaker 2: I still remember the mixed emotion there you know, emotion
Speaker 2: of excitement because we're doing something historic, but also a
Speaker 2: lot of tension because zillion things can go wrong in
Speaker 2: a rocket launch and you know, it's being broadcasted live
Speaker 2: across the globe. So it was a very crazy experience.
Speaker 2: And finally, you know, as the rocket took off and
Speaker 2: it was it was going in the right direction, everything stable.
Speaker 2: I mean, I felt like super excited and probably one
Speaker 2: of the best experiences of my life. I still remember,
Speaker 2: you know, the whole experience because typically I had a
Speaker 2: lot of dreams of rockets failing before, and you know,
Speaker 2: when actually goes up, well, incredible experience.
Speaker 1: So what's the difference between why rockets succeed and why
Speaker 1: rockets fail?
Speaker 2: Yeah, it's so I always think that, you know, the difference
Speaker 2: between success and failure is very very thin, you know,
Speaker 2: very very thin. And typically, you know, some of the
Speaker 2: most trivial things can go wrong in a rocket, like
Speaker 2: you know, bolt one bolt not working, you know, so
Speaker 2: some electrical connector snapping off, you know, or like one
Speaker 2: of the systems not working, some filter not you know,
Speaker 2: doing well, or some component not being built well. You know,
Speaker 2: the very very trivial things typically go wrong and that's
Speaker 2: what is rocket science is about it. It has to
Speaker 2: be perfect, even there's no there is you have to
Speaker 2: build in such a way that nothing can go wrong
Speaker 2: every time.
Speaker 1: So give me an unerstanding for our wider audiences. When
Speaker 1: you launched wikrm s to space, what was the aim
Speaker 1: behind that and what has it done after getting launched?
Speaker 2: Yeah, so typically I think you know, many people think
Speaker 2: actually space is of the domain of governments, but in
Speaker 2: fact space is a five hundred billion dollar business global
Speaker 2: you know, it's like, in fact, on the fastest growing
Speaker 2: industries and in fact, the World Economic Forum estimates that
Speaker 2: it is going to become one point eight trillion dollar
Speaker 2: economy by you know, twenty thirty five. Space is going
Speaker 2: to become and in fact, the world's most valuable private
Speaker 2: companies a space company, you know, which is space X. So,
Speaker 2: so I think that shows the potential of space and
Speaker 2: for that, you know, the center of the space industries
Speaker 2: is rocket launching, where you need to launch satellites to
Speaker 2: space to be able to give those services, which is
Speaker 2: like a variety of services across the globe. Especially one
Speaker 2: of the biggest things is communication from space, even television, GPS,
Speaker 2: you know, Earth something on Earth observation where you click
Speaker 2: images from space and multiple industries use it, you know,
Speaker 2: including the government. It's a pretty large industry. And the
Speaker 2: center of it is actually the rocket launch, you know,
Speaker 2: going from Earth to space and then opening up the
Speaker 2: you know space for business. So that's that's where it is.
Speaker 2: And for that building a rocket which can launch satellites
Speaker 2: to orbit is center to space economy, and that's what
Speaker 2: we wanted to you know, build you know, one of
Speaker 2: some of the best rockets in the world which can
Speaker 2: launch satellite stob It was the hard Leny companies and
Speaker 2: Hardleny countries doing you know, launchers, and the world needs
Speaker 2: more access to space because you need to create connectivity
Speaker 2: for billions of people. And now you know we're talking
Speaker 2: about like even data centers in space, you know, with
Speaker 2: the lowest cost of compute is in space because you
Speaker 2: have almost like ten times more energy in space than
Speaker 2: on Earth, right so so so space will actually transform
Speaker 2: lives right here on Earth. And then it's a very
Speaker 2: attractive large business with high barriers of entry and rocket
Speaker 2: launches like at the center of it, and the most
Speaker 2: toughest nut to crack. And that's what we started off
Speaker 2: with and so we wanted to have one test rocket
Speaker 2: where we can build with less capital very quickly to
Speaker 2: demonstrate rocket technology. And for that we build W Croms
Speaker 2: which is India's first private rocket, and we built in
Speaker 2: record time from design to launch in two years and
Speaker 2: successful in the very first attem. Typically rocket launchers don't
Speaker 2: go well in the first attem and it went went
Speaker 2: to speed, cross eighty kilometers and touch space and became
Speaker 2: very successful. And then it was all done by you know,
Speaker 2: just over one hundred people team Wow and right in India,
Speaker 2: fully designed, developed, manufactured in India. We became one of
Speaker 2: very few companies who have launched the rocket to space globally.
Speaker 2: And then the purpose of it is to test technologies
Speaker 2: which can go into the commercial rocket which can put
Speaker 2: satellites into orbit. So it's much smaller rock just to imagine,
Speaker 2: it's something like a two storyed building tall rocket, but
Speaker 2: it tests majority of the technologies which can go on
Speaker 2: to a bigger rocket which can put satellites into orbit.
Speaker 1: And that okay, So rocket as high as two floors is.
Speaker 2: A small rocket is a small dog.
Speaker 3: So what's the you know, large rocket.
Speaker 2: So now we're getting to become one which can actually
Speaker 2: put a satellite in orbit. And it not only goes
Speaker 2: to space, but it goes to orbit. That means like
Speaker 2: it crosses even goes beyond four hundred kilometers and puts
Speaker 2: a satellite at a very large velocity so that it
Speaker 2: rotates around the Earth. So that's the purpose of an
Speaker 2: orbital rocket, what we call it. India's first private orbital
Speaker 2: rocket is become one and we're going to launch soon
Speaker 2: in a few weeks. And that is seven story building tall.
Speaker 2: And you need such such a big rocket to put
Speaker 2: a satellite in norbit and this is like some of
Speaker 2: the smallest rockets in the world, you know.
Speaker 3: So, and how long has it taken you to make
Speaker 3: that already? Yeah, still in the making.
Speaker 2: Yeah, so it took a development of around four five
Speaker 2: years and which is one of the quickest globally. Again
Speaker 2: and then and then you know, we're set to launch soon.
Speaker 1: And what is difference between SubOrbit and orbit? You said
Speaker 1: bichrom S was in SubOrbit and one will be in
Speaker 1: the orbit, So what's the difference there?
Speaker 2: So so you know, so if you want to if
Speaker 2: you want a satellite to rotate around the Earth, which
Speaker 2: is called an orbit, you need the rocket needs to
Speaker 2: insert the satellite at something like you know, eight kilometers
Speaker 2: a second. The rocket has to give that speed to
Speaker 2: the satellite, and you should take it beyond four one
Speaker 2: kilometers so that there is no atmosphere at all there
Speaker 2: and and then like you know, leave it with that
Speaker 2: velocity of eight kilometers per second. Then it rotates around
Speaker 2: an orbit. And in an orbit you can stay for
Speaker 2: several years. The satellite stays for several years giving services
Speaker 2: down to Earth, and it has a sign optic view
Speaker 2: what we call a sign uptic cure. With that height,
Speaker 2: you can you can see watch Earth, you can give
Speaker 2: connectivity to Earth for a very wide region, etcetera, etcetera.
Speaker 2: So so I think, so that is orbital rocket. So
Speaker 2: rocket needs more energy to go to that altitude and
Speaker 2: give that much velocity to the satellite. And sub orbit
Speaker 2: means just you know, it just touches space. I mean,
Speaker 2: what we have done is a suborbital space launch where
Speaker 2: it just touches space. You know, NASA defines eighty kilometers
Speaker 2: as space. So our rocket reached eighty nine kilometers, It
Speaker 2: crossed that you know, eighty kilometers line and then mark,
Speaker 2: and then it just touched space. And it's more like it.
Speaker 2: For testing. We launch the rockede, but we use the
Speaker 2: same materials, we use the same propulsion, we use the
Speaker 2: same electronics, you know, we use the same simulation. So
Speaker 2: so all that a lot of you know, almost eighty
Speaker 2: percent of that tech got proved in that particular launch.
Speaker 2: And then we're taking the learnings to a much bigger rockete,
Speaker 2: which is seven story building tall, which can actually put
Speaker 2: a satellite into orbit. So here the sub orbit means
Speaker 2: it just touches space and falls down. It doesn't create
Speaker 2: that velocity or the altitude, you know, which can put
Speaker 2: in satellite run around death.
Speaker 1: Okay, but you know, you did say that there are
Speaker 1: very few companies and very few countries that have launched
Speaker 1: rockets so far. So why is there this gap and
Speaker 1: what were you able to fulfill and how are you
Speaker 1: able to fill that gap?
Speaker 2: Sure? So, so, as we all say, it's rocket science,
Speaker 2: so it's very very difficult to build and launch rockets
Speaker 2: to space is some of the toughest feats in engineering,
Speaker 2: and in fact, like the biggest challenge is that the
Speaker 2: rocket can be only tested when you can actually launch.
Speaker 2: You know, you can test so many things on the ground,
Speaker 2: but the real environment is the actual test. And then
Speaker 2: you know, you don't have many chances. You have to
Speaker 2: actually build it and you know, launch it and very
Speaker 2: complex and you know, and Earth's gravity well is so
Speaker 2: big that you know, you need so much energy to
Speaker 2: launch to our bit right, So it's very tough technology
Speaker 2: to crack. And in fact, India has a history of
Speaker 2: starting the space program in nineteen sixty two when doctor
Speaker 2: wickham Sarabai started in a very small church with few
Speaker 2: inspired scientists, and I saw the space program started. And
Speaker 2: there's been more than sixty years. And now we went
Speaker 2: to Moon, we went to March. We build huge rockets,
Speaker 2: we build satellites, big, big satellites. So I think there's
Speaker 2: been an incredible journey. And we build an ecosystem you know,
Speaker 2: around it for the last sixty years so and very
Speaker 2: few nations were able to build it sustain it. And
Speaker 2: also you need great geography for launching. You need to
Speaker 2: actually on you have a coast so that the rocket
Speaker 2: stages fall in the sea in safe zones and better.
Speaker 1: Is that the reason why many countries cannot.
Speaker 2: So many countries, yeah, so many countries are landlocked. There
Speaker 2: is one challenge and many countries did not take the
Speaker 2: challenging path to build a rocket also, right, So typically
Speaker 2: if you see like the larger economies doing it and
Speaker 2: like you know, whether it's US, Russia, China, you know,
Speaker 2: so they are the ones who pioneered pioneered this and
Speaker 2: so India, in fact, doctor Sarabai's vision was India should
Speaker 2: be second to none and an application of advanced technology
Speaker 2: to common man. And he believed that space can affect
Speaker 2: the life of common man, like whether it's television, whether
Speaker 2: it's radio, you know, and then started the program in
Speaker 2: nineteen sixties where many people did not dare to start
Speaker 2: a program, and it takes that much time also, you know,
Speaker 2: to get to that evolution. So India took early leaps
Speaker 2: in this and and then that's how where we are.
Speaker 2: We are among you know, very few nations, maybe eight nations,
Speaker 2: we have the capacity to launch a rocket to orbit.
Speaker 2: And we have blessed with the great geography, blessed with
Speaker 2: wonderful engineers and technocrats in the country right who have
Speaker 2: did it, who took this path, and we have government
Speaker 2: supporting it over decades. So it's a very very rare feat,
Speaker 2: you know, which happened and I think we're building on
Speaker 2: top of it. I think you know, we are not there.
Speaker 2: Skyroude will not be able to do what we're doing.
Speaker 2: We thought their CoSystem below the last sixty years by.
Speaker 1: So absolutely so you're launching Wickrem one in just two
Speaker 1: weeks from now.
Speaker 3: We're very excited for it, all the very best.
Speaker 1: It is almost one, you know, moment that the entire
Speaker 1: nation and the world will be watching very very closely
Speaker 1: as well.
Speaker 3: What's the feeling like when you do something like that?
Speaker 2: Oh? Wow, I mean like it. It's very satisfying, in fact,
Speaker 2: very satisfying to flag off the rocket from our facility
Speaker 2: to the lawn site, which we have done a few
Speaker 2: weeks ago, Okay, And I mean it's I really really
Speaker 2: know how difficult it is to actually design rocket, manufacture it,
Speaker 2: developed it, tested and make it ready to even sput
Speaker 2: to the lawn site and start operations there. Such an
Speaker 2: incredible milestone, you know, because we know how difficult. It is,
Speaker 2: very satisfying to see all come together, you know, so
Speaker 2: typically it takes sometimes decades even to do this, you know,
Speaker 2: and things go wrong and you know you need to
Speaker 2: fix it. Sometimes you get stuck and getting to this
Speaker 2: milestone itself is very satisfying, and then I think next
Speaker 2: step now it's going to get integrated at the lawn site,
Speaker 2: stacked on the launch pad and take off in a
Speaker 2: few weeks. So really looking forward to the major milestone.
Speaker 2: It's not only major milestone for sky Route and India,
Speaker 2: is also a globally major milestone because hardly very few
Speaker 2: companies in the world have achieved it so far.
Speaker 3: How many rockets have got launch so far?
Speaker 2: Like from one yeah, so, so globally they're like around
Speaker 2: like you know, five six companies for launching to orbit
Speaker 2: on a Out of that, only two companies are regularly
Speaker 2: launching to orbit. Space Sex is among the leading among them.
Speaker 2: And so that's where we are, like we're getting into
Speaker 2: a league of light list of very few companies five
Speaker 2: companies yeah, yeah, yeah so and then like that makes
Speaker 2: us also like you know, doing it from a startup
Speaker 2: with the very humble beginnings, and doing it from a
Speaker 2: country when there was no space policy and the starting
Speaker 2: opened up recently and even there's no funding environment actually
Speaker 2: to start off with, and now it's like a very
Speaker 2: very burgeoning funding environment right now everything is coming together
Speaker 2: and then doing it and taking it global, and you
Speaker 2: know doing it is very, very incredible and very satisfying journey.
Speaker 1: Absolutely, you raised recent funds and that turned you into
Speaker 1: a unicorn as well, another feat and the first startup
Speaker 1: in the space tech firm to achieve that feat as well.
Speaker 3: How did that happen?
Speaker 1: Did you very easily convince your investors? Were there too
Speaker 1: many investors? Because at such you know, a space where
Speaker 1: there are very few players, you almost have a monopoly,
Speaker 1: you know, in this kind of a situation, and all
Speaker 1: the investors would be looking at your prior success and
Speaker 1: maybe looking at what opportunities are existing. You already talked
Speaker 1: about the numbers that kind of market that it is
Speaker 1: growing to be.
Speaker 3: So was there a lot of fight and were you.
Speaker 1: Choosing the investors rather than investors choosing you?
Speaker 2: No? In fact, like I've been I always say that,
Speaker 2: like you know, for us, raising capital, raising funds has
Speaker 2: been like rocket science, you know, because because it's it's
Speaker 2: a very new sector, very few investors have exposure to this.
Speaker 2: So actually, like you know, having you know, conversations about
Speaker 2: very deep technology, no precedents before, very few companies in
Speaker 2: the world you know doing it globally. It's a difficult,
Speaker 2: a tough challenge even for investors to even fathom that
Speaker 2: something of that can happen and become into a very
Speaker 2: successful business. So I think it's been a very challenging
Speaker 2: journey to be able to cross that bridge. And I
Speaker 2: think until Wickrems launch, I think we had a tough
Speaker 2: time raising capital. But after that it became like, you know,
Speaker 2: fairly I would say, like not that difficult, but still difficult,
Speaker 2: but not that difficult because that proved a lot of
Speaker 2: capability and we've done it in record time, record costs,
Speaker 2: and we approved that you know, engineering is really works
Speaker 2: in flight. And so I think after that it has
Speaker 2: been relatively similar, but still challenging. And and then like
Speaker 2: I think we I always believe that uh, you know,
Speaker 2: fundraising and there, whether it's you know, valuations, et cetera,
Speaker 2: as all by product of the good work, focused work
Speaker 2: which is happening. And like you know, how we are,
Speaker 2: you know, get getting ready for the future, and very
Speaker 2: fortunate that we have wonderful investors backing our vision and
Speaker 2: our journey and many of them were new to the
Speaker 2: space sector as well, and you know, so and they're
Speaker 2: all taking the bet on the space sector, taking a bed,
Speaker 2: many of them first time uh in the country as
Speaker 2: as well, Like you know, investing in something deep tech,
Speaker 2: it's it's it's just something happening very for the first time.
Speaker 1: I would say, absolutely, So this is an exciting space.
Speaker 1: Is there any ask from your investors at this stage?
Speaker 1: Usually investors when they invest in startups, they always look
Speaker 1: at ruh, They always oka at, you know, how fast
Speaker 1: can their money double, triple, multifold. What's their ask in
Speaker 1: this space since they're also experimenting for the first time
Speaker 1: and they know that the risks are fairly large, larger
Speaker 1: than any other sector, that you would be.
Speaker 2: Yeah, yeah, And in fact, like I think we had
Speaker 2: a very I would say, like the most incredible set
Speaker 2: of investors because the first three four years were mainly
Speaker 2: funded by entrepreneurs who made it a big you know,
Speaker 2: like so we had like you know, angel investors who
Speaker 2: made it build successful companies backing us and the initial
Speaker 2: years you know, and they're in for the long run,
Speaker 2: They're in for the journey, you know. And then from
Speaker 2: there you have some of the world's largest funds. We
Speaker 2: you know, graduated to like you know, get the interest
Speaker 2: of like one of the world's largest funds backing us, right,
Speaker 2: so it'd been like a very good set of investors
Speaker 2: who think very long term, and it is, I mean,
Speaker 2: space is a very long journey always. I mean, like
Speaker 2: you can build incredible you know companies when you can
Speaker 2: wait long just and periods are longer. But we exactly
Speaker 2: got the right set of investors, I would say. And
Speaker 2: growth also has been quite good so far. I'm like,
Speaker 2: you know, we started very very early on. You know,
Speaker 2: we're not even eight years old. And then and I'm
Speaker 2: now from you know, starting off with like some like
Speaker 2: five six million dollars valuation to like, you know, across
Speaker 2: a billion dollars now, so it's been growth has been
Speaker 2: like incredibly fast as well. But of course, you know,
Speaker 2: so it's very still very beginning phase of the journey,
Speaker 2: I would say, a long long way to go, and
Speaker 2: and I think this year will be a landmark year
Speaker 2: for us as we take off it from one, get
Speaker 2: into commercial launching and join this alight club in the
Speaker 2: world where like you know, launching satellites stop.
Speaker 1: It absolutely so tell me, you know, you have been
Speaker 1: an engineer and an entrepreneur as well, So where does
Speaker 1: the engineer stop thinking and where does the entrepreneur start thinking.
Speaker 2: Yeah. So in fact, I don't look at both differently.
Speaker 2: That's I think really helped me a lot. Okay, because
Speaker 2: I've seen many people thinking I'm a great engineer or
Speaker 2: a scientistory of technolog so business is not my forte, right,
Speaker 2: So but I look at it as everything is problem solving,
Speaker 2: you know, like for example, I look at business also
Speaker 2: as engineering, you know, so it's it's I look at
Speaker 2: using the scientific method, like you know, so bring it
Speaker 2: to fundamentals, you know, break it down, break the problem down,
Speaker 2: logical reasoning, find solutions, experiment it. If it doesn't work well,
Speaker 2: really worked out really well. And also if you've seen
Speaker 2: some of the greatest entrepreneurs engineers and you know, because
Speaker 2: because they are tuned or trained to have that scientific
Speaker 2: thought process, right and h and also like very open
Speaker 2: to experimentation, very agile, you know, problem solvers have good judgment, right,
Speaker 2: So I think that really helped them. And I didn't
Speaker 2: look at it differently. I lookdated the same same ecosystem.
Speaker 2: In fact, like when starting the company, I didn't even
Speaker 2: know what is equity. I didn't know how to raise
Speaker 2: capital nothing, literally everything from I had to learn from scratch.
Speaker 2: That really helped because I had no baggage. You know,
Speaker 2: I have no learnings to unlearn, so I've learned everything
Speaker 2: from scratch. And then just at first, like Speechlight is like, uh,
Speaker 2: you know, yeah, so we're building a rocket company and
Speaker 2: you know, and it's very exciting times globally, and it's
Speaker 2: a very growing, interesting market with very large barriers to entry.
Speaker 2: And uh. And then like I've been you know, a
Speaker 2: part of the rocket industry fort quite some time. You know,
Speaker 2: if you can feel the opportunity, can feel the tech,
Speaker 2: can build the tech, and it is the right opportunity
Speaker 2: for India as well to build it, you know, and there's
Speaker 2: a great foundational elements like you know, great talent, grad geography,
Speaker 2: grad ecosystem. Everything is built so and we can build
Speaker 2: like large global companies is the global market and India
Speaker 2: can in fact, like building a company from India can
Speaker 2: glow global, especially in deep technology from space.
Speaker 3: Yeah.
Speaker 1: So you're also looking at geographically a lot of clients
Speaker 1: that could be coming into you as well. So give
Speaker 1: me and I'm standing there as well, how are you approaching,
Speaker 1: what kind of companies are approaching you, and how things
Speaker 1: proceed from here?
Speaker 2: Yeah, so in fact, like there are like quite a few,
Speaker 2: you know, maybe a few hundred satellite companies across the globe,
Speaker 2: some all some very big, and many of them planning
Speaker 2: constellation of satellites across the around the ear or a
Speaker 2: period of time, especially in the last next one decade.
Speaker 2: And and all of them need access to space. They
Speaker 2: have very limited options today and especially you see like
Speaker 2: many of them come from US, Europe, Southeast Asia and
Speaker 2: uh you know, in Japan, and you know, different different
Speaker 2: regions across the globe. And then like you know, and
Speaker 2: space is global, you know, and and we're talking to
Speaker 2: almost all the key key people who are planning constellations,
Speaker 2: and yeah, looking forward to working with them as we
Speaker 2: launched to keep launching to space.
Speaker 3: Absolutely.
Speaker 1: When you talk about wikrom one, you know, at your
Speaker 1: Infinity Center, we saw Prime Minister Moody flagging that off.
Speaker 1: What was the moment like to meet Prime Minister Modi?
Speaker 1: What did he say to you at this.
Speaker 3: Point in time?
Speaker 1: Is there a vision that he wants you to fulfill
Speaker 1: for the country.
Speaker 2: Yeah, yeah, so so in fact, I pinch myself every time,
Speaker 2: you know, so so Modiji, you know, inaugurating our facility
Speaker 2: himself and also like you know, talking really wonderful things
Speaker 2: about Sky Route and as you know, as founders that
Speaker 2: we took that leap of faith and started the company.
Speaker 2: And uh he said that you know, nation is very
Speaker 2: proud of you, and you know, and and also like
Speaker 2: says that Infinity is like the very great uh you know,
Speaker 2: symbol of youth in the country and you know what,
Speaker 2: how youth are thinking in the country, et cetera. A
Speaker 2: sort of very inspiring to see you know, the Prime
Speaker 2: Minis of the country, you know, lauding the efforts. You know,
Speaker 2: it really felt very very satisfying, you know, looking at
Speaker 2: that and and that that actually is a really good
Speaker 2: uh you know, uh inspiration for us to even push
Speaker 2: ourselves farther much better. And uh and then like you know,
Speaker 2: really it's uh it gives us energy to run faster,
Speaker 2: you know, do things better and uh yeah, sort of
Speaker 2: Infinity facility is also like a landmark facility. And I
Speaker 2: mean we built the largest facility by the private sector
Speaker 2: in India which has a capacity to build one orbital rocket
Speaker 2: every month. Every month, every month is a capacity. But
Speaker 2: we are yet to get there, to get to the
Speaker 2: production of the scale. But yeah, we build the capacity
Speaker 2: to get there.
Speaker 1: Okay, And uh, you know, do you see this launch
Speaker 1: of wikrom one as India's own SpaceX moment?
Speaker 3: Are we there yet? What's the future looking like for us?
Speaker 2: Yeah? So I think like it's a great moment for
Speaker 2: India because you know, a private company, you know, building
Speaker 2: a rocket and launching a rocket to space is unprecedented.
Speaker 2: And uh and then like you know, opens up India
Speaker 2: to a wide global market, which is today India's sits
Speaker 2: set around two percent of the global space market and
Speaker 2: the ambition is to take it to eight to ten
Speaker 2: percent in the next five to seven years. So I
Speaker 2: think that that's I think that's a great ambition aspirational
Speaker 2: target to have and that needs private initiatives, private investment
Speaker 2: and growing fast, you know, collaborating with the government and
Speaker 2: then moving fast competing globally. And this is I think
Speaker 2: is a new chapter, like you know, when one will
Speaker 2: take off and start launching satellite orbits, a new chapter
Speaker 2: for India joining in a light club of companies and
Speaker 2: countries in the world where a private company is a
Speaker 2: wile to launch saterist to space.
Speaker 3: Absolutely.
Speaker 1: Did you also have a chance to meet or talk
Speaker 1: to Elon Musk and what do you think not yet?
Speaker 2: Not yet. In fact, he's been a great inspiration for me.
Speaker 2: In fact, uh, you know, I've been following him since
Speaker 2: my college days. And incredible feats he has done. I mean,
Speaker 2: he's pushed the boundaries of you know, what humans can do,
Speaker 2: you know literally you know, uh and uh. And how
Speaker 2: he works and how he looks at engineering, how he
Speaker 2: builds great teams, really really inspiring, and what he has
Speaker 2: achieved is incredible. In fact, it's it gives it gave
Speaker 2: a fillip to the entire space industry globally, you know,
Speaker 2: it's just uh, it helped governments invest more, it helped
Speaker 2: investors look at the sector friendly, you know, it helped
Speaker 2: more entrepreneurs coming. And it was very inspirational what he
Speaker 2: has done. And I think like the space Hector owes
Speaker 2: him a lot.
Speaker 3: And did he have any role in inspiring you to
Speaker 3: get into this space?
Speaker 2: Absolutely, I think it's one of the key, one of
Speaker 2: the few inspirations. In fact, like Elons one inspiration and
Speaker 2: doctor Wickrum Sarabai is one inspiration.
Speaker 1: Because have you named after him?
Speaker 2: Because in fact, a tribute to him, because I look
Speaker 2: at him as an entrepreneur who started the space program
Speaker 2: in nineteen sixties. You know, that's how you know it
Speaker 2: took the bold is he he had the best life
Speaker 2: and he in fact he wanted to take become a
Speaker 2: scientist and you know, you know push space indust in
Speaker 2: India start started. He thought like India should be second
Speaker 2: to none and technologies especially like space, and his space
Speaker 2: program in a very small church in a fishing village.
Speaker 2: You know, it's very small set of scientists convincing the
Speaker 2: government to start the space program. I see it is
Speaker 2: like a really good entrepreneurial spirit happening in nineteen sixties.
Speaker 2: That inspired me. Also, you know, take that bold leap
Speaker 2: and start start the company. And also what we're doing
Speaker 2: today is because the ecosystem is built. You know, that's
Speaker 2: why we rocket as we come. And in fact, just
Speaker 2: to give an idea, like the next rockat we're going
Speaker 2: to launch, have more than four hundred suppliers all from India,
Speaker 2: and the rocket is one hundred person designed in India,
Speaker 2: hundred person manufactured in India, mostly sourced within India, that
Speaker 2: ecosystem and launched from India and with a great geography,
Speaker 2: and I think it's all happened because Doctor started as
Speaker 2: space program in nineteen sixty two.
Speaker 1: So today we have reached that space where India is
Speaker 1: second to none and we have all the capabilities just
Speaker 1: like how global companies like SpaceX have, Yes, you know,
Speaker 1: and do you think we can become as.
Speaker 3: Big as SpaceX?
Speaker 1: Ever, what's the kind of journey we will that take?
Speaker 2: Yeah, I think the potential is there. You know, how
Speaker 2: value we solve problems and how fast we get there
Speaker 2: is the question. And I think we had like very
Speaker 2: strong advantages, like you know, we're incredibly capital efficient, very
Speaker 2: incredible engineering resources available in the country, great jog you
Speaker 2: like I mentioned, greater ecosystem already built in you know,
Speaker 2: and so I think all the ingredients are there. You know,
Speaker 2: it's how fast and how better you can solve the problem.
Speaker 2: And I think SpaceX is almost now, I think a
Speaker 2: twenty five old company, So it takes time as well,
Speaker 2: you know, to build like such as it has that
Speaker 2: snowball effect. You know, as you as you as a
Speaker 2: build bigger, you have a more leverage to grow faster.
Speaker 2: So yeah, I think very early phase for us, but
Speaker 2: I think we can get there.
Speaker 3: Pavan.
Speaker 1: I also wanted to ask you will there also be
Speaker 1: a time when you're saying that so many rockets will
Speaker 1: start launching. You yourself have a capacity of building one
Speaker 1: rocket every month, and more and more companies will come
Speaker 1: to you to send their satellites into space. Will it also,
Speaker 1: you know, create the need for having many more companies
Speaker 1: like you?
Speaker 3: What's the kind of opportunity you see? There?
Speaker 1: Is this space also going to get increasingly competitive?
Speaker 2: Yeah? No, I think you know, there will be a
Speaker 2: few companies will make it on a regular basis. The
Speaker 2: best problem solvers will be definitely and uh, you know,
Speaker 2: but but the space is a lot I mean, like
Speaker 2: the opportunity is a lot for more people. But but
Speaker 2: I think very few people will actually make it because
Speaker 2: I know how difficult it is. And uh uh you know,
Speaker 2: even we are still in the early phase because you
Speaker 2: have to prove a lot going forward in the commercial space.
Speaker 2: And yeah, there's still opportunity for a few and uh,
Speaker 2: but but it will not definitely not be crowded because
Speaker 2: it's it's it's very very difficult to make it and
Speaker 2: the early players and the people who disrupt with new
Speaker 2: and disruptive technologies will definitely make it.
Speaker 1: Yeah, and you know, as an entrepreneur, also wanted to
Speaker 1: ask you, is space the best sector to invest in
Speaker 1: right now?
Speaker 3: For all the investors who are watching you right now?
Speaker 2: I would say yes, because, you know, because I can
Speaker 2: feel it, I can see it. Uh and uh. And
Speaker 2: in fact, it's a it's there's high barriers to entry market,
Speaker 2: the market is large, it's a blue ocean. And uh,
Speaker 2: it's it's it's it's global market and India has fundamental advantages.
Speaker 2: I think like it's the best, it's just the best
Speaker 2: sector to invest in.
Speaker 1: And you've already reached this unicorn stage. What's next for
Speaker 1: you now? Now it's the milestone.
Speaker 2: The next milestone is launching from one to orbit, you know.
Speaker 2: So so it's the first test flight, so we may
Speaker 2: require more test flights, you know, to be able to
Speaker 2: prove orbital capability. And once we prove obital capability reliably,
Speaker 2: being able to sustain obital flights for a long time
Speaker 2: and be able to produce the rockets in large numbers
Speaker 2: and keep launching them reliably is a big challenge to solve.
Speaker 2: And and then of course, you know, we're a business,
Speaker 2: you know, getting into revenues profits, you know, And then
Speaker 2: like investing of that and the future developments, future technologies,
Speaker 2: bigger vehicles, you know, all that is very exciting. I
Speaker 2: think the roadmap ahead of us.
Speaker 1: So you've had so many firsts in your journey so far.
Speaker 1: Will you also be the first ever space tech startup
Speaker 1: to you know, do an IPO and get listed on
Speaker 1: the stock markets.
Speaker 2: It's difficult to save and right now we're not thinking
Speaker 2: IPO a bit early right now, but still, you know,
Speaker 2: difficult to tell right now, but our just focuses in
Speaker 2: building and launching good rockets right now.
Speaker 1: You've also started off the company scheduled with the ambition
Speaker 1: of open space for all.
Speaker 3: That's the line that you use, tagline that you use.
Speaker 1: So given understanding, what does it really mean opening space
Speaker 1: for all? Is it too meant for private sector that
Speaker 1: you're talking about, or is it meant for everybody who
Speaker 1: dreams of going to space someday?
Speaker 2: Yeah? So have you gone to space yet?
Speaker 1: No?
Speaker 3: I don't know. There are very few people. A couple
Speaker 3: of people have gone from.
Speaker 2: So yeah, so that's exactly what it is. So space
Speaker 2: is not yet open for all, and that's what we
Speaker 2: want to make it, you know, open for all. So
Speaker 2: start with like you know, open for satellite companies to
Speaker 2: launch their satellites and large numbers, but eventually, you know,
Speaker 2: to launch human's cargo maybe one day settlements in space,
Speaker 2: you know. So that's that's the dream, that's aspray, and
Speaker 2: we're taking it step by step, you know, with the
Speaker 2: first step of we did a sub orbital launch to space,
Speaker 2: and orbital launch to space, and then we grow bigger
Speaker 2: and you know, hopefully like you know, maybe one day,
Speaker 2: you know, we launch humans to space.
Speaker 1: Right, and so will that become like a common question
Speaker 1: to ask what you asked me today, have.
Speaker 3: You gone to space?
Speaker 1: Will that become you know eventually like have you gone
Speaker 1: to some you know, country abroad?
Speaker 3: Will come as common as that?
Speaker 2: Yeah, I think I think so. And and in fact,
Speaker 2: so do you know how much time it takes to
Speaker 2: go to space?
Speaker 3: Make a guess, maybe a few hours.
Speaker 2: Just take ten minutes, ten minutes, yeah, So for example,
Speaker 2: it took me one and a half hour to come
Speaker 2: here from the airport. Yes, and so that when space
Speaker 2: is closer oh my god, humans, yes, yeah, so so
Speaker 2: so rockets typically take ten fifteen minutes to reach an
Speaker 2: orbit in space. And so that's how fast the rockets
Speaker 2: are and then you know, so that was space is
Speaker 2: so close than what we imagine, and it's just that
Speaker 2: the gravity well is so big that you know, it's
Speaker 2: so expensive today and it's not still so reliable for
Speaker 2: us to go to space. But I think that's going
Speaker 2: to change, you know soon, and in just a few decades,
Speaker 2: I think it's become as common as taking a flight,
Speaker 2: and and and then that requires the evolution in rockets.
Speaker 2: We should go from like today, on average, one rocket
Speaker 2: launch happens every day globally, and then probably it will
Speaker 2: in the future it'll be several hundreds a day, several
Speaker 2: thousands a day like flights, just like flights, and that's
Speaker 2: where we are a cusp of that transformation. But if
Speaker 2: you see, like for example, in early nineteen nineteen hundreds,
Speaker 2: you know, when the aircraft's the first the right brothers
Speaker 2: took off right, so there's just a few flights, you know,
Speaker 2: and now like millions of flights taking off right, So
Speaker 2: it's it's a that journey. And now it's like you know,
Speaker 2: over one hundred years and this have and in space.
Speaker 2: The first space launch happened in nineteen fifty seven or
Speaker 2: so Hostbital you know mission the Sputnik launch, and so
Speaker 2: still we are very early phases of the space and
Speaker 2: I think that will soon transform into you know, going
Speaker 2: to probably like all of us taking a flight, taking
Speaker 2: a holiday in space sometime and coming back. It's it's
Speaker 2: going to happen soon.
Speaker 3: When are you going to space?
Speaker 2: I would I would love to go to space, you know.
Speaker 2: And and now I now just focused on, you know,
Speaker 2: launching satellites to orbit now. But hope will you know,
Speaker 2: grow weak to eventually you know, be able to put
Speaker 2: humans in space as well?
Speaker 1: Absolutely, Well that's the dream that you continue to dream
Speaker 1: on so that we can also ever in our lifetimes,
Speaker 1: in our current lifetimes, be able to launch into space. Well,
Speaker 1: it's been a pleasure to speak to you, bobn. There's
Speaker 1: so much more that we can go on to discuss,
Speaker 1: but we'll wrap it up on that note. But all
Speaker 1: the very best for VIKRM one. We're all glued to
Speaker 1: you and all the very best wishes to you. This
Speaker 1: is going to be successful and we're all watching out
Speaker 1: for this proudest moment that India will have by way
Speaker 1: of you launching Wickreme want to space.
Speaker 2: Thank you, thanks a lot, such thank you so much.
Speaker 3: It's been a pleasure