Peak XV in 1st deal after rebrand backs $10m round of Digantara

(From left) Digantara founders Anirudh Sharma, Tanveer Ahmed, and Rahul Rawat / Photo credit: Peak XV Partners

According to data from the European Space Agency, there could be as much as 131 million pieces of space debris orbiting the earth. While some of these are less than a centimeter wide, around a million of them are small enough to go undetected but big enough to damage spacecrafts, according to spacetech firm Digantara.

This is the problem the India-based company hopes to solve with Space-MAP (Mission Assurance Platform), its one-stop solution that its said will be “as powerful and sophisticated as Google Maps” in the context of space situational awareness (SSA).

Now, the company has secured US$10 million in a series A1 round to “invest heavily” in its tech infrastructure. The raise was led by Peak XV Partners and marks the firm’s first investment announcement since changing its name from Sequoia Capital India and Southeast Asia.

Funding details

• Funding amount: US$10 million
• Lead investors: Peak XV Partners
• Other investors: Kalaari Capital, Global Brain Corporation, Campus Fund
• Stage: Series A1
• Source

The round also saw participation from Kalaari Capital, Global Brain, Campus Fund, and the founders of IIFL Wealth Management. It follows Digantara’s US$2.5 million seed round in 2021.

According to the spacetech firm, it has started the development of India’s first commercial SSA optical observatory in the Indian state of Uttarakhand to bolster the country’s space capabilities. Last year, Digantara also launched a commercial space-based space weather monitoring system, which it said was another first.

“We believe that this will lead to significant capability in the life cycle of managing satellites, which is a rapidly growing market,” said Shailesh Lakhani, managing director at Peak XV.

Sequoia Capital India and Southeast Asia announced its rebranding to Peak XV earlier this month. The company said that with the change, it hoped to squash potential portfolio-related conflicts and boost local autonomy.

See also: Recession Run: Sequoia’s $850m plan during a downturn

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