Bengaluru-based spacetech startup The Guild has raised $20.5 million in a Series A round led by TDK Ventures and BIG Capital, with participation from Accel, Prosus, YourNest, Campus Fund, BlueHill Capital and Riceberg Ventures. The fresh infusion takes the company’s total funding to $25.5 million and values it at about $80.5 million, underscoring growing investor interest in India’s private space sector.
Building a fully reusable medium-lift rocket
Founded in 2022 (formerly EtherealX), The Guild is developing advanced launch vehicle technology with the stated goal of delivering the world’s first fully reusable medium-lift rocket. The startup says its Razor Crest Mk‑1 vehicle will recover and reuse both booster and upper stages, a capability aimed at materially lowering per‑launch costs and reducing turnaround time between missions.
The company targets a payload capacity of up to 24.8 tonnes to Low Earth Orbit (LEO) and 10.8 tonnes to Geosynchronous Transfer Orbit (GTO), placing Razor Crest Mk‑1 in the medium‑lift class suitable for commercial satellite launches, large constellations and government payloads.
Proprietary propulsion and thermal management
The Guild is developing in‑house propulsion systems to power its reusable architecture. Its Stallion semi‑cryogenic booster engine is designed to produce about 1.2 meganewtons of thrust with reusability as a key design parameter. The Pegasus upper‑stage engine is sized at roughly 80 kilonewtons of thrust.
A notable technical choice is the use of a Full‑Flow Segregated Cooling Cycle (FSCC) for the upper‑stage engine. FSCC is an advanced thermal management approach intended to handle extreme heat loads more efficiently and support repeated engine reuse, an important factor in lowering lifecycle operating costs for reusable rockets.
Scaling test infrastructure in South India
To accelerate hardware development and qualification, The Guild is expanding its test facilities. The company currently conducts engine tests at BASE‑001 in Cuddalore, Tamil Nadu, and will establish BASE‑002 in Space City, Andhra Pradesh using the new capital. The upcoming facility is planned to accommodate engine firings, stage‑level testing, qualification programmes and refurbishment operations.
Robust ground infrastructure is critical for reusable systems, which require frequent, rigorous validation cycles before progressing to flight‑readiness.
Investor confidence and market ambition
The Series A round, which includes both domestic and international investors, reflects growing confidence in India’s spacetech ecosystem and in The Guild’s technical roadmap. The company has stated an ambition to reduce launch costs to around $500 per kilogram — a target that, if realised, could make India a more competitive supplier of affordable commercial launch services.
Founders and backers present the venture as a long‑term play on engineering, talent and cost efficiency, aiming to broaden competition in a global launch market currently concentrated among a few operators.
Context for India’s private space sector
The funding comes amid accelerating momentum for India’s private space industry, driven by regulatory reforms, increasing commercial demand for satellite launches and growing venture capital interest. Startups pursuing reusable launch vehicles, advanced propulsion and large payload capabilities represent a maturing layer of deep‑tech firms addressing complex, high‑impact challenges.
The Guild’s development progress and test milestones will be watched closely by industry stakeholders and policymakers, since successful demonstration of full reusability and cost reduction at scale could strengthen India’s position in the global commercial launch market.
