Vikram-1 success propels Chandana into TIME100 Next

Hyderabad: Skyroot Aerospace co-founder and CEO Pawan Kumar Chandana has been named among TIME magazine’s TIME100 Next 2026, joining a global list of 100 emerging leaders that includes singer Raye, actor Ashley Padilla, comedian Druski, footballer Arch Manning, actors Chase Infiniti and Yerin Ha, athlete Tyrese Maxey, astronaut Anna Menon, technology entrepreneur Tosin Eniolorunda and AI researcher Max Jaderberg.

Chandana’s recognition comes in a landmark year for the Hyderabad-based space startup, which became India’s first space-tech unicorn after raising nearly $60 million in May at a valuation of $1.1 billion. The recognition also follows Skyroot’s successful Vikram-1 orbital mission in July, when the privately developed rocket carried customer satellites into orbit. The mission made Skyroot the first Indian private company to successfully achieve an orbital launch, marking a major milestone for the country’s emerging commercial space sector.

The achievement drew praise from Prime Minister Narendra Modi, who described the Vikram-1 launch as a “historic new frontier” for India’s space journey and said it reflected the country’s growing capabilities in innovation, technology and entrepreneurship.

Modi later met Chandana and Skyroot co-founder Naga Bharath Daka and said their energy, ambition and positivity reflected the vibrant spirit of India’s private space ecosystem. He also conveyed his best wishes to the Skyroot team.

TIME highlighted Chandana’s journey from the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO), where he worked as an engineer, to founding Skyroot in 2018 with Daka. The magazine noted that Skyroot now employs more than 1,000 people and has a valuation of $1.1 billion.

Chandana’s inclusion places an Indian space entrepreneur alongside rising figures from business, technology, entertainment, sport and culture. TIME said the TIME100 Next recognises individuals whose work is defining the next generation of leadership.

For Chandana, the recognition caps a rapid transformation of Skyroot from a startup founded by former ISRO engineers into a billion-dollar space company with ambitions to build a regular commercial launch business. The company’s Vikram-S had earlier become the first privately developed Indian rocket to reach spacein 2022, laying the groundwork for the more ambitious Vikram-1 programme.