In a significant boost for India’s burgeoning private space sector, Bengaluru-based EtherealX (now officially rebranded as The Guild) announced on January 15, 2026, that it has raised $20.5 million in a Series A funding round. The investment has catapulted the company’s valuation to $80.5 million, a 5.5x jump from its seed-stage valuation of $14.6 million.
The round was co-led by TDK Ventures and BIG Capital, with participation from a heavyweight syndicate including Accel, Prosus, YourNest Venture Capital, BlueHill Capital, Campus Fund, and Riceberg Ventures.
EtherealX (The Guild) Series A Breakdown
This funding allows the startup to challenge the global dominance of SpaceX by focusing on a “fully reusable” architecture—recovering both the booster and the upper stage.
| Metric | Details (as of Feb 2026) |
| Funding Amount | $20.5 Million (₹183.4 Crore) |
| New Valuation | $80.5 Million (~5.5x increase) |
| Total Funding to Date | $25.5 Million |
| Primary Goal | Development of the Razor Crest Mk-1 |
| Target Launch Cost | $500 – $1,000 per kg |
The Razor Crest Mk-1: A New Benchmark
The fresh capital is earmarked for the accelerated design and testing of the Razor Crest Mk-1, which EtherealX describes as the world’s first fully reusable medium-lift launch vehicle.
1. Payload Capacity
- Expendable Mode: 24.8 tonnes to Low Earth Orbit (LEO).
- Fully Reusable Mode: ~8 tonnes to LEO.
- GTO Capability: Can deliver 10.8 tonnes to Geosynchronous Transfer Orbit.
2. In-House Engine Development
The rocket features a “clustered engine” design, utilizing two proprietary liquid engines:
- Stallion (Booster): Generates 1.2 meganewtons of thrust (9 engines used per liftoff).
- Pegasus (Upper Stage): An 80kN engine featuring a proprietary Full Flow Segregated Cooling Cycle (FFSCC) and 3D-printed turbopumps (15 engines used).
Operational Roadmap & Infrastructure
EtherealX is moving from “lab to launchpad” with several key milestones set for 2026–2028:
- Engine Hot-Fire Tests: Scheduled for mid-2026 at the company’s “Base 001” site in Tamil Nadu.
- New Manufacturing Campus: Establishing a 150-acre facility in Andhra Pradesh’s proposed “Space City,” expected to be operational by mid-2026.
- Demonstration Flight: Targeted for late 2027.
- Commercial Operations: Projected to begin by late 2028, with an initial cadence of 5–6 missions annually.
Market Traction
Despite being in the development phase, the company has already secured $130 million in Memoranda of Understanding (MoUs) from international clients, including Japan’s SpaceBD and Taiwan’s TASA.
The rebranding to “The Guild” (Ethereal Exploration Guild) signifies the company’s broader ambition to build a collaborative ecosystem for space exploration, potentially expanding into Small Modular Reactors (SMRs) for high-density energy in space in the future.
