India Sends AI Lab and ‘Thermal Eyes’ to Space as Four Startups Ride SpaceX Falcon 9

India’s private space industry has reached another important milestone after technologies developed by four Indian space startups travelled to space aboard SpaceX’s Falcon 9 rocket on the Transporter-18 rideshare mission.

The mission carried hardware from Hyderabad-based Dhruva Space, TakeMe2Space and EON Space Labs, along with Ahmedabad-based SatLeo Labs.

Together, the Indian technologies are designed to test something much more ambitious than conventional satellite communications: artificial-intelligence computing in space, thermal imaging of Earth, ultra-compact optical imaging and commercial satellite-hosting infrastructure.

SpaceX’s Falcon 9 lifted off from Vandenberg Space Force Base in California on October 1 local time, or shortly after midnight in India on October 2. Transporter-18 carried 130 payloads into a sun-synchronous orbit. SpaceX says the mission included CubeSats, microsatellites, hosted payloads, orbital transfer vehicles and re-entry spacecraft.

For India’s growing private space sector, however, four companies stood out.

Four Indian Startups, Three Very Different Space Technologies

The Indian presence on Transporter-18 was not centred on one single satellite.

Instead, several startups used the same launch to test different parts of a future commercial space ecosystem.

Indian Company	Technology	Main Purpose
Dhruva Space	LEAP-2	Satellite hosting and mission infrastructure
TakeMe2Space	MOI-1A	AI computing directly in space
SatLeo Labs	TAPAS-1	Thermal Earth observation
EON Space Labs	MIRA	Ultra-light multispectral space imaging

The technologies range from a 14kg AI-computing spacecraft to a telescope weighing just over half a kilogram.

That diversity is what makes the mission particularly interesting: Indian private companies are not all attempting to build the same type of satellite.

They are targeting different layers of the space economy.

TakeMe2Space Sends an AI Computer Into Space

One of the most closely watched Indian technologies on the mission is TakeMe2Space’s MOI-1A orbital computing satellite.

The Hyderabad startup is trying to change how Earth-observation information is processed.

Traditional observation satellites collect huge quantities of imagery and transmit much of that raw data to ground stations. Computers on Earth then process the information.

MOI-1A is designed to move part of that computing into space itself.

Instead of downloading every image first, customers will eventually be able to upload AI models that process selected Earth-observation information aboard the spacecraft and transmit the resulting insights back to Earth.

That could reduce the amount of data that needs to travel between a satellite and ground infrastructure.

117 TOPS of AI Computing Power

Despite its compact size, MOI-1A carries substantial computing hardware.

TakeMe2Space lists the spacecraft at approximately 14kg, with:

117 TOPS of onboard computing performance, 16GB of memory, 2TB of storage, a nine-band multispectral imaging system and up to 120W peak power.

The AI processing hardware is based on Nvidia’s Jetson Orin NX architecture and protected for operation in the low-Earth-orbit radiation environment using TakeMe2Space’s RadShield technology.

The startup says its broader goal is to process Earth-observation data in orbit and transmit useful intelligence instead of continuously sending large raw datasets to the ground.

Potential applications include agriculture, mining, insurance, environmental monitoring and supply-chain intelligence. Reuters reported before launch that TakeMe2Space had already signed 23 customers for the mission.

But MOI-1A Has Another Important Step Ahead

There is an important distinction in the mission timeline.

Some early reports described the Indian payloads as having reached orbit following the Falcon 9 launch. However, EON Space Labs—which has its MIRA imaging system aboard MOI-1A—said after launch that the spacecraft had successfully reached the next stage of its journey and that the next milestone is planned for October 10, when MOI-1A is expected to be injected into orbit by an orbital transfer vehicle.

So the Falcon 9 launch itself was successful, but readers should not interpret that as meaning every experiment aboard MOI-1A is already fully deployed and operational.

The upcoming deployment and commissioning stages will be important.

SatLeo’s TAPAS-1 Will Look at Earth’s Heat

While TakeMe2Space is focused on computing, SatLeo Labs is trying to see Earth in a different way.

Its TAPAS-1, or Thermal Access Platform for Analytics & Solutions, is described by the company as India’s first dedicated private commercial thermal payload.

Instead of relying only on conventional visible-light imagery, TAPAS-1 uses thermal infrared sensing to identify temperature patterns.

That matters because two areas can look similar in a conventional satellite image while behaving very differently thermally.

A thermal sensor can potentially detect information that an ordinary optical camera cannot directly reveal.

What Can Thermal Imaging Detect?

SatLeo identifies several potential applications for space-based thermal intelligence.

Agricultural analysis could identify crop stress, moisture differences and irrigation requirements.

Urban monitoring could reveal heat islands and overheating structures.

Energy companies could analyse thermal variations around solar farms, industrial facilities and power infrastructure.

Disaster-management systems could potentially identify wildfire hotspots and other abnormal temperature patterns.

TAPAS-1 is therefore primarily a technology-validation mission.

The startup now needs to demonstrate that its sensing hardware, payload and data-processing chain perform as intended in the actual space environment.

Dhruva Space Provides the Hosting Platform

TAPAS-1 did not travel as a standalone SatLeo satellite.

It is hosted aboard Dhruva Space’s LEAP-2 mission.

LEAP stands for Launching Expeditions for Aspiring Payloads.

Dhruva describes LEAP-2 as its second commercial mission using the company’s P-30 satellite platform.

Alongside SatLeo’s TAPAS-1, LEAP-2 hosts a star tracker developed by France-based Sodern, part of ArianeGroup.

This highlights another business model emerging in the space industry.

Not every company developing a sensor or scientific experiment needs to build an entire satellite from scratch.

A company such as Dhruva can provide the spacecraft platform, integration and supporting infrastructure while customers concentrate on their own payload.

Dhruva Also Integrated LEAP-2 With Falcon 9

Dhruva’s role extended beyond manufacturing the satellite platform.

The company says it handled end-to-end launch integration of LEAP-2 with SpaceX’s Falcon 9.

Dhruva previously performed in-house launch-vehicle integration for its LEAP-1 satellite.

The company is also building ground infrastructure.

Its LEAP-2 mission will be supported by Dhruva’s ground station in Luleå, Sweden, which the company describes as the first ground station outside India owned and operated by an Indian non-government entity and authorised by the Government of India to provide Ground-Station-as-a-Service.

That moves Dhruva toward becoming a broader space-infrastructure provider rather than only a satellite manufacturer.

A 502-Gram Indian Telescope Is Also Flying

Perhaps the smallest Indian technology on the mission is also one of the most interesting.

EON Space Labs has integrated its MIRA imaging payload with TakeMe2Space’s MOI-1A.

MIRA weighs approximately 502 grams.

Despite that tiny mass, it is designed as a multispectral Earth-observation imaging system.

EON specialises in miniaturised electro-optical and infrared imaging systems for satellites, drones and ground platforms.

The company’s technology is focused on reducing the size and weight of high-performance optical systems, which can be particularly valuable in space because launch mass directly affects mission design and cost.

MIRA Recently Received an Indian Patent

The Transporter-18 flight comes just days after EON Space Labs received an Indian patent covering its miniaturised telescope-based imaging system.

The company says MIRA combines compact optical design, imaging electronics and payload integration developed in India.

Its official product information describes the MIRA family as ultra-compact optical telescopes designed for small satellites and CubeSats.

MIRA’s flight aboard MOI-1A will give EON another opportunity to test its imaging technology in the space environment.

MIRA’s Journey Has Not Been Straightforward

This is not the first time EON has attempted to fly MIRA.

An earlier version was associated with India’s PSLV-C62 mission in January 2026, which failed before the payload could complete its intended mission.

EON subsequently prepared the technology for another flight opportunity.

The Transporter-18 mission therefore represents more than a first attempt.

For the startup, it is also an example of how space companies must design around launch risks and return to flight after setbacks.

SpaceX Carried 130 Payloads on One Falcon 9

The Indian hardware was only a small part of an unusually diverse mission.

SpaceX says Transporter-18 carried 130 payloads.

These included CubeSats, microsatellites, hosted payloads and orbital transfer vehicles.

The Falcon 9 lifted off from Space Launch Complex 4E at Vandenberg Space Force Base in California.

Its first-stage booster then returned to Vandenberg and successfully landed after completing its 25th flight. The upper stage proceeded into low Earth orbit and began deploying payloads.

Transporter missions are part of SpaceX’s rideshare programme, which allows many smaller spacecraft operators to share a single rocket rather than purchasing an entire dedicated launch.

That can make access to orbit more practical for startups and research organisations.

Google Also Put an AI Experiment on the Same Rocket

The AI-in-space story was not limited to India.

Transporter-18 also carried a prototype satellite for Google’s Project Suncatcher.

Google confirmed after launch that it had established contact with its prototype spacecraft and that the satellite was operating as expected.

Project Suncatcher is a research effort exploring whether space could eventually host scalable machine-learning infrastructure.

Google plans to use the prototype to study how its TPU computing hardware responds to radiation, thermal extremes and other stresses associated with operating in orbit.

That makes Transporter-18 particularly notable: both Google and an Indian startup are exploring different pieces of the emerging idea of computing directly in space.

Why Process AI Data in Space?

Modern Earth-observation satellites can generate enormous amounts of information.

The traditional workflow generally requires satellites to capture the data, wait for a suitable ground-station connection, transmit it to Earth and then process it in data centres.

Onboard AI changes that sequence.

A satellite could potentially identify what is important before transmission.

For example, rather than downloading thousands of images of agricultural land, an onboard model might analyse them first and return information about areas showing unusual crop stress.

TakeMe2Space claims its OrbitLab approach could reduce transmission costs by as much as 85%, although that figure is the company’s estimate and real-world performance will depend on the workload and mission.

Why India’s Private Space Sector Is Changing

India’s commercial space ecosystem has expanded significantly since private companies were given a larger role in satellite manufacturing, launch services and other space activities.

This mission demonstrates how specialised those companies are becoming.

Dhruva is developing satellite infrastructure and hosting.

TakeMe2Space is working on orbital computing.

SatLeo is targeting thermal intelligence.

EON is miniaturising advanced imaging hardware.

Instead of four companies attempting to build identical satellites, each is addressing a different technical layer.

That specialisation could become important as India’s private space sector moves from demonstrations toward commercial services.

The Launch Is Only the Beginning

A successful rocket launch is an important milestone, but it does not automatically prove that every payload will achieve its mission objectives.

The Indian teams now need to move through deployment, communication, commissioning and in-orbit testing.

For SatLeo, success means demonstrating useful thermal sensing and processing.

For Dhruva, it means operating its hosting platform and supporting its customers’ payloads.

For EON, it means validating compact imaging hardware.

For TakeMe2Space, the bigger test will be whether customers can reliably run AI workloads aboard MOI-1A and receive useful results from orbit.

And, importantly, EON’s latest mission update says October 10 is the next planned milestone for MOI-1A’s orbital injection.

That makes this mission a story worth following beyond launch day.

If the technologies work as intended, Transporter-18 will not simply have carried Indian hardware into space. It will have tested several of the building blocks Indian startups hope to turn into future commercial businesses: orbital AI computing, thermal intelligence, compact Earth observation and satellite infrastructure.