Drone startupGaruda Aerospace, backed by former Indian cricket captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni, has raised INR 25 crore in a fresh bridge round of funding led by Venture Catalysts, India’s first integrated incubator and a leading investor for early-stage and WeFounderCircle.
The funding round witnessed commitments from other notable investors, including Hems Angels, San Angels, Peaceful Progress Funds and several prominent angel investors, which collectively capped out the funding round.
Garuda Aerospace founder-CEO Agnishwar Jayaprakash said, “This fresh capital infusion will play a crucial role in accelerating our growth and enhancing our capabilities to meet the escalating market demand. With the continued backing of esteemed investors and the endorsement of MS Dhoni, we are confident in our mission to revolutionize the drone technology sector in India.”
“Garuda’s strong commitment to delivering cutting-edge drone solutions, combined with their impressive market share in the precision agri drone industry, demonstrates their potential for significant growth and we believe that this investment will not only strengthen Garuda’s position as a market leader but also revolutionize the way drones are utilized across various sectors,” Apoorva Ranjan Sharma, founder-MD at Venture Catalysts ++, stated.
“Garuda is disrupting the drone ecosystem by introducing the micro entrepreneur business model for rural India, after successfully establishing itself as leader in corporate & industrial segments,” added Neeraj Tyagi, co-founder-CEO, We Founder Circle.
The funds secured through this bridge round will be primarily utilised to address the sudden demand for drone solutions. The company will allocate the funds towards working capital requirements, ensuring execution of the IFFCO drone order and fulfilling the pre-booked orders from numerous dealers across the country.
Recently, Garuda Aerospace achieved a strategic partnership with Indian Farmers Fertiliser Cooperative Limited for a drone order of 400 units and a pre-booking of total 10,000 drones from 700 dealers across the country.
