Chennai-based propulsion startup Viridian Ingni Propulsion has raised ₹1.47 crore in a pre-seed round led by Inflection Point Ventures (IPV), in one of the smaller but most technically ambitious rounds in startup funding in India this week. The company also received ₹53.75 lakh in grants from SIPCOT, MeitY Startup Hub, NIDHI PRAYAS, IIT Madras Research Park’s RTBI programme and Cummins CSR.
Building the full propulsion stack in-house
Founded in February 2024 by Sriram G and incubated at IIT Madras Research Park, Viridian designs and validates motors, controllers and firmware in-house, delivering all three as a single validated unit for electric vehicles, drones, robotics and industrial machinery. Its rare-earth-free ferrite motors target e-rickshaws, two-wheelers, HVAC systems, compressors and solar pumps, while its permanent magnet motors serve drones, collaborative robots, automated guided vehicles and marine applications. The startup says it holds letters of intent for 350 motors from two customers and is currently pre-revenue with a five-member engineering team.
What the money will build
The fresh capital will move Viridian from validated prototypes to pilot production, funding motor-stamping tooling and dies, a pilot production line and small manufacturing facility, ARAI/ICAT certification and homologation, motor-controller firmware validation, engineering and business hires, and working capital for first customer deliveries. Founder Sriram G said India designs very few of its own propulsion systems end-to-end, and that IPV backed the thesis early.
Why it matters for founders
Deeptech founders should note the playbook here: a small, credible round plus government grants can carry a hardware startup from prototype to pilot production. Certification and a pilot line — not headcount — are what unlock first customer orders.