India’s naval drone strategy just got a real hardware injection: Bengaluru-based Rekise Marine pulled in $9.7 million from Accel and NKSquared to push its autonomous submarine Jalkapi from prototype to deployed asset.
Jalkapi: The Extra-Large Autonomous Underwater Vehicle That Changes the Patrol Calculus
Rekise Marine is building full-stack unmanned maritime systems — not just retrofitting existing hulls with autonomy kits. Jalkapi is their extra-large autonomous underwater vehicle (XLAUV), designed for endurance, silent operation, and payload flexibility. $9.7 million buys a lot of titanium pressure vessels and sonar integration, and that’s exactly what they’re spending it on.
Why Accel and NKSquared Bet on Bengaluru’s Submarine Shop
Both Accel and NKSquared have deep India tech portfolios, but this is their first meaningful bet on underwater defense hardware. The Indian Navy is actively looking to field unmanned surface and subsurface platforms for surveillance, mine countermeasures, and anti-submarine warfare. A homegrown full-stack supplier beats importing black-box drones from Israel or the US, especially when sovereign control over autonomy software matters.
What the Money Actually Buys
Engineering talent expansion tops the list. Building an XLAUV that can operate for weeks without comms, navigate with minimal GPS, and carry modular payloads requires top-tier controls engineers, hydrodynamacists, and embedded systems people. Rekise Marine is hiring — and they’re competing with the same pool that makes Swiggy’s delivery algorithm run. The investors are betting they can match defense-scale technical rigor with startup velocity.
Jalkapi isn’t a science project. With this round, Rekise Marine moves from proving the concept to delivering a platform the Indian Navy can actually put to sea.
Source: Rekise Marine raises $9.7 million from Accel, NKSquared to build autonomous naval platforms
Domain: economictimes.indiatimes.com
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