ISRO, IN-SPACe ties up with AWS to give space startups a cloud boost

Amazon Web Services has tied up with ISRO and IN-SPACe to advance India's space capabilities with cloud technologies

Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) and the space regulator, Indian National Space Promotion and Authorisation Centre (IN-SPACe), have partnered with Amazon Web Services (AWS) in an effort to provide startups and research institutes with access to cloud technologies, as announced by AWS on September 13.

This collaboration comes at a time when the Indian space ecosystem is experiencing significant momentum, following ISRO's historic achievement of being the first to safely land on the Moon's South Pole. Additionally, many space tech startups have secured funding during what is referred to as the "funding winter."

As part of this partnership, AWS will offer eligible space startups access to tools, resources, and technical support at no cost through the AWS Activate program. AWS also highlighted that startups will benefit from its expertise in developing aerospace and satellite solutions through the AWS Space Accelerator program.

Furthermore, ISRO, IN-SPACe, and AWS will work together on a new initiative to train students and educators in cloud computing, artificial intelligence (AI), machine learning (ML), analytics, and security by leveraging AWS education programs.

Shalini Kapoor, Director and Chief Technologist, Public Sector, AWS India and South Asia, emphasized, "Cloud computing-led innovations enable the space industry to make better decisions, faster – pushing the boundaries of possibilities, and AWS is committed to helping startups identify use cases and accelerate solution development, as well as building a strong talent pool in India with expertise in cloud and space."

N Sudheer Kumar, Director, Capacity Building and Public Outreach at ISRO, stated, "Advancing innovation in the space sector is a top priority for our nation, as geospatial solutions have the power to deliver high-quality services for good governance for citizens and add value to stakeholders."

Vinod Kumar, Director of the Promotion Directorate at IN-SPACe, added, "...IN-SPACe has continuously been striving to empower and facilitate the private space sector. This partnership with AWS is a testament to that, and through this collaboration, we aim to empower startups, students, and researchers to dream beyond the skies, drive innovation, and contribute to the global space industry."