India’s push to put artificial intelligence on board spacecraft has a fresh set of backers. The Indian National Space Promotion and Authorisation Centre (IN-SPACe), the country’s space regulator and promoter, has selected six private space-sector companies for seed-fund grants under its AI INSPIRED programme, which is designed to accelerate the use of AI in space technology.

Each selected company is eligible for a grant of up to ₹1 crore. The programme, announced in February 2026 under IN-SPACe’s Seed Fund Scheme, carries a total outlay of up to ₹6 crore and is aimed at helping startups and micro and small enterprises build AI-based products for space applications.

Who made the cut

The selected projects cover some of the hardest problems in modern spaceflight, from landing precisely to keeping orbits safe:

• Agnikul Cosmos will build an edge AI-enabled, vision-based terminal navigation module to improve precision during the final stages of a landing.
• Digantara has been chosen for its Agentic RSO Evaluation Suite (ARES), applying agentic AI to the assessment of resident space objects.
• EON Space Labs will develop an intelligent optical payload using FPGA-based edge AI for real-time space situational awareness and debris detection.
• OrbitAid Aerospace will work on machine-learning-assisted pose estimation, which helps a spacecraft judge its relative position and orientation while approaching, docking with, servicing or refuelling another satellite.
• Omnipresent Robot Technologies will take up an automated target recognition project with applications in defence and docking.
• TakeMeToSpace will modernise attitude determination and control systems (ADCS) with AI, enabling more adaptive spacecraft autonomy.

Mentorship and ISRO access for two more

Beyond the six grantees, IN-SPACe has picked Foucault Private Limited and AkashaVeda Technologies for mentorship and technical support. Foucault is working on an AI and machine learning-based autonomous collision avoidance system for spacecraft, while AkashaVeda is focused on AI-driven mission management across onboard and ground operations. Both will get opportunities to validate their technologies at IN-SPACe and ISRO facilities and will be considered for technology transfer from the Department of Space.

Why it matters

As satellite constellations grow and low-Earth orbit gets more crowded, decisions that once waited for ground control increasingly need to be made on board, in real time. Edge AI for navigation, debris tracking and autonomous docking is fast becoming a core capability rather than an add-on. By funding Indian startups to build these systems domestically, and giving them access to ISRO’s test infrastructure, IN-SPACe is positioning AI as part of the foundation of India’s growing private space economy.

The initiative is part of IN-SPACe’s wider effort to expand private participation in India’s space sector by supporting the development of indigenous technologies and products.

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