The startup trying to build India's next generation of satellite eyes.

India’s space and defence ambitions increasingly depend on sophisticated imaging systems, but many of the critical sensors inside them still come from overseas. Ahmedabad-based SpectraGaze Systems is trying to move more of that technology into India — and has now raised ₹3.7 crore in seed funding to accelerate the effort.

The round was led by GVFL, with participation from angel investors, and marks SpectraGaze’s first external fundraise after roughly three years of customer-funded operations. Founded in 2023 by former ISRO scientist Arup Banerjee, who spent 23 years at the space agency, the startup develops optical imaging sensors and electro-optical payloads for space, defence and scientific applications.

SpectraGaze has already worked with institutional customers including ISRO, the Physical Research Laboratory and Kaynes Technology. It has delivered an infrared detector and test system to ISRO and secured an image-sensor development contract for ISRO’s next-generation HRSAT programme in partnership with AMETEK.

The startup has also won an iDEX PRIME Challenge to develop an indigenous Infrared Detector Dewar Cooler Assembly, including the detector itself. The broader goal is to reduce dependence on imported components in imaging systems where detector technology is often one of the most specialised and difficult layers to build domestically.

The new capital will support product development, existing customer programmes, engineering hiring, testing infrastructure and business development. SpectraGaze is also developing a hyperspectral imaging camera for a 3U satellite, scheduled for delivery to Kaynes Technology in November 2026.

Its longer-term roadmap spans Earth observation, greenhouse-gas mapping, drone-based hyperspectral imaging and space-based intelligence applications. The company’s strategy is therefore not simply to build another satellite business. It is targeting the specialised imaging hardware that satellites, scientific instruments and defence platforms need before any useful image can be captured in the first place.