How electro-optics startup Optimized Electrotech is strengthening national defence and homeland security?

n November 2019, media reports revealed that the Indian government was looking to fund at least 250 defense startups over the next five years to come up with new, cutting-edge solutions for the armed forces. The Indian Ministry of Defence earmarked Rs 500 crore for its Innovations for Defence Excellence (iDEX) initiative to find new technologies to help the Indian armed forces.

Sandeep launched the startup after working in defense and space for more than 15 years. He roped in his cousin, Dharin, an IISc Bangalore alum who’s spent almost 20 years of his life in Electronics R&D, as co-founder and head of electronics and product design at Optimized Electrotech. It took Sandeep for almost one year to meet the other co-founders and build the core team.

According to the co-founder, the products offered by the startup work on the 400 nm to 12μ range, the visible range of the electromagnetic spectrum (range of all types of EM radiation), and are equipped with different types of optics to enable several applications. The startup’s first line of products, the InfiVision series, works on VIS+NIR wavelength and has been designed to detect a tank in more than 30km range. The MistVision series works on SWIR wavelength and provides a long-range electro-optics system for fog penetration. The ClearVision series works on VIS NIR and MWIR spectrum and helps in high spectral-range surveillance in all weather conditions while the NoctVision series works on VIS NIR and LWIR wavelength to carry out surveillance at night.

The upcoming line – the OmniVision series - will include capabilities of all the four wavelengths - VIS NIR, SWIR, MWIR, and LWIR. It will be able to monitor a long-range area amid any weather obstacles such as smog, smoke, fog, and darkness.

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According to the co-founder, in the initial phase, the startup took support from Optimized Solutions, the first venture founded by Sandeep, and completed their journey till prototyping. Following this, the startup received its first VC investment from GVFL and a fund grant of Rs 1.5 crore from the Indian government as the winner of the iDEX challenge. He adds that working in the defense sector requires patience and persistence, and thus not many VCs take an interest in the sector. “However, we’re seeing good interest from some VCs and family offices apart from a few foreign OEMs for investments,” Sandeep says. Speaking about the business model, the co-founder says: “Our go-to-market is three-pronged. We serve Defence OEMs and system integrators with our products as a raw material in their larger systems. We serve end users looking at only EO surveillance such as day or night imaging. We also build custom products for clients who are not in the defense sector. Our over-the-air upgrades available on some products enhance our customers’ ROI for our product by continuously adding more capabilities for a small annual subscription fee.” The startup competes with other Indian players such as Bharat Electronics (BEL) and Tata Aerospace & defense among others. On a global level, the startup also faces competition from Elbit (Israel), IAI (Israel), Thales (France), and Safran (France), and among others. Optimized Electrotech is currently testing a few products aimed at the export sector and is now looking to get necessary certifications and create new products for non-defense sectors. Talking about their long term goal, Sandeep says the startup aims to become “one of the top three surveillance companies in the next decade”.

This release was published on openPR.