International Conference on Space 2025 – September 8 – 9, 2025 (Location-Bengaluru)

By R Anil Kumar

Indian space sector has undergone a transformative growth, offering substantial opportunities. The space sector, currently valued at USD 8.4 billion, holds a modest 2 % share of the global space economy. However, projections suggest that by 2033, India’s space industry could expand to USD 44 billion, with exports contributing USD 11 billion—further positioning India as a key player in the global arena.

This remarkable growth is fuelled by the ISRO and an expanding private sector, which has seen the emergence of nearly 200 startups in recent years. Besides this, establishment of the INSPACe to regulate space activities, the creation of NSIL to provide launch services, and the announcement of the Indian Space Policy 2023, and liberalisation of Foreign Direct Investment (FDI) in 2024 has further been spurring the growth of private sector, opening doors for new opportunities and foreign partnerships with Indian space companies.

Bengaluru. The International Conference on Space (ISCE) 2025, a premier platform dedicated to advancing the space sector through innovation, collaboration.

The conference, organized by, Confederation of Indian Industry (CII), a leading industry body and supported by key national space agencies, is expected to be held on 8 – 9 September 2025 at Taj Yeshwantpur, Bengaluru.

This event aims bring together government, industry experts, academic leaders, and emerging innovators to shape the future of the space economy through inclusive and forward-looking discussions.

The global space economy, valued at USD596 billion in 2024, is projected to exceed USD1.8 trillion by 2035, growing at nearly 9 per cent annually.

India’s current share of approximately 2 per cent is expected to expand to around 8 per cent over the next decade. This growth is being driven not only by cost-effective launch systems and satellite manufacturing, but also by the increasing operationalisation of downstream services that integrate space-based capabilities into governance, economic development, and national resilience.

ISCE 2025 aims to feature sessions on enabling private sector participation, strengthening indigenous capabilities, and fostering innovation across satellite communication, Earth observation, and space-based applications. The agenda also highlights the role of startups, talent development, and the integration of space technologies into infrastructure and strategic sectors.

ISCE 2025 contributes thought leadership and strategic insights across key sessions, supporting the development of a resilient and inclusive space ecosystem. The conference offers an opportunity to engage with stakeholders, explore emerging technologies, and build meaningful partnerships that support long-term sectoral growth.

ISCE 2025 is designed to be a catalyst for dialogue, innovation, and collaboration – bringing together diverse perspectives to unlock the full potential of space as a driver of sustainable progress.

From policy frameworks to technology adoption, the event aims to provide a wide view of the opportunities and pathways ahead.

Sessions Include

Bridging the Gaps in Achieving India’s Space Vision

India stands at a transformative juncture in its space journey— with a decadal vision that charts an ambitious roadmap towards becoming a globally competitive space power.

While policy reforms, ISRO’s mission successes, and the rise of private players have laid a solid foundation, critical gaps still exist.

This session will explore targeted interventions to address these bottlenecks across four pillars: regulatory clarity, access to private capital, advanced R&D infrastructure, and availability of skilled talent.

Bringing together key voices from government and private sector, the discussion will unpack actionable strategies for accelerating space reforms, promoting deep-tech innovation, enabling smoother procurement and licensing frameworks, enhancing tailored risk coverage solutions and strengthening India’s public-private model.

*The private sector is playing a pivotal role in shaping the New Space Economy by driving innovation, attracting investment, and accelerating commercialisation across the entire value chain from manufacturing of components for launch vehicles and satellites in the upstream segment to a wide range of downstream applications.

This session will delve into how private enterprises are spearheading technological breakthroughs, enhancing global competitiveness, and advancing innovation, R&D, commercialisation, investment, infrastructure development and support space value chain in space sector.

In this session, the experts will share compelling examples of public-private partnerships that have effectively bridged the gap between government vision and private sector execution.

*India’s space sector is undergoing a transformative shift towards self-reliance, with a growing emphasis on strengthening indigenous capabilities across the value chain.

With over 200 space startups, the country is witnessing unprecedented private sector engagement. India’s ambition to increase its share in the global space economy from the current 2% to 10% by 2033 underscores the urgency to develop domestic capacities in satellite manufacturing, launch systems, ground infrastructure and downstream applications.

The session will explore how India can scale critical technologies, reduce import dependence, and build a resilient and globally competitive space ecosystem through coordinated efforts between industry, government, and startups.

Next-Gen Satellite Communication: Enabling 5G/6G, IoT, EmTech and National Resilience

Next-generation satellite communication systems are poised to become foundational to the digital infrastructure of the future- enabling seamless 5G/6G connectivity, expanding the reach of IoT networks, and bolstering national resilience through secure and ubiquitous coverage.

These next-gen satellite technologies are playing a critical role in advancing modern communication and national infrastructure.

These advancements promise to bridge digital divides, support critical infrastructure, and enhance real-time data capabilities across urban and remote regions.

The session will discuss:

• The pivotal role of satellites enabling advanced network technologies, enhancing remote and rural connectivity, strategic applications and ensuring national resilience.
• How satellite communication can support secure, high-throughput, and low-latency connectivity
• Emerging satellite technologies and their impact across sectors such as agriculture, mobility, disaster response, and defence
• Prioritising infrastructure investments essential for enabling next-generation satellite communication
• Implementing policy and ecosystem level reforms to nurture a globally competitive SatCom sector.

Exploring New Markets and Unlocking Opportunities through Earth Observation and Satellite Data

Earth Observation (EO) data is revolutionizing critical sectors such as agriculture, climate monitoring, urban planning, Infrastructure Deployment and disaster response.

With a projected global market of USD 14.6 billion by 2031, EO is emerging as a key enabler of smarter, data-driven decision-making.

In India, EO capabilities are expanding rapidly, with over 50 operational EO satellites contributing to diverse applications including agriculture, disaster management, urban planning & infrastructure development, and climate monitoring.

This session will explore how EO is unlocking new opportunities across sectors, the evolution of EO capabilities in India and globally, and strategic approaches to convert raw satellite data into viable business models. It will also highlight global best practices and emphasize the importance of data accessibility and infrastructure in accelerating EO-driven innovation.

Empowering Innovation: Role of Startups in Shaping Space Ecosystem

The global space economy is projected to surpass USD 1 trillion by 2040, with startups playing a pivotal role through innovations in satellite manufacturing, launch services, and space data analytics.

India’s space startup ecosystem is rapidly expanding, with over 200 registered ventures as of 2025, supported by IN-SPACe and emerging public-private collaboration frameworks.

These startups are democratizing access to space, driving cutting-edge technology development, and positioning India as a competitive space-faring nation.

Their innovations are fuelling economic growth and enabling applications across sectors making startups key architects of the future space landscape.

This session will provide insights into the current startup ecosystem, highlighting emerging funding opportunities and support frameworks tailored to these agile enterprises. The discussion will explore the roles of incubators, investors and corporate in nurturing space-focused businesses.

Additionally, it will examine the challenges faced by startups and recommend actionable strategies to foster a more enabling environment for their growth and long-term success in the space industry.

Leveraging International Collaboration for Sustainable Exploration, Innovation, and Technology

International collaboration is pivotal to advancing sustainable space exploration, innovation, and technology development.

With over 90 countries now operating in space and participating in the global space economy, such partnerships enable shared expertise, cost optimization, and the accelerated development of cutting-edge technologies.

By strategically leveraging global expertise, nations are not only driving scientific breakthroughs but also fostering resilient, inclusive, and future-ready innovations aligned with long-term development goals.

India’s space sector has evolved significantly through international cooperation.

As of 2024, India has signed over 260 space cooperation agreements with more than 60 countries – facilitating joint missions, data sharing, and technology transfer.

These alliances have played a key role in strengthening India’s scientific capacity and global positioning.

This session will explore how international partnerships can be harnessed to support sustainable space exploration, spur innovation, and enable the co-development of next-generation technologies.

Enhanced Focus on the Complementary Dimension of the Space – Defence Relationship

India’s push to strengthen space assets for defence applications marks a strategic step toward reinforcing its national security framework, while advancing its broader ambition of securing 8–10% of the global space economy.

With defence emerging as a major demand driver within the space sector, the integration of space-based technologies for surveillance, communication, and intelligence is poised to not only enhance operational readiness but also catalyse deeper private sector involvement.

This session will explore:

• Transformative potential of space technology integration in strengthening national defence capabilities.
• How space innovations significantly advanced defence operations
• Policy frameworks that foster collaboration and knowledge exchange between civilian and military space programmes
• Special initiatives to build technical capacity among defence personnel in operating and leveraging space technologies
• Role of emerging technologies with the evolving dynamics of the Space Defence nexus and space security.

Shaping the Future: Building Talent and a Skilled Workforce for India’s Emerging Space Economy

As India’s space sector rapidly evolves with growing private participation, innovation, and international collaborations, the demand for a highly skilled, future-ready workforce has become more critical than ever.

Spanning satellite manufacturing, launch services, downstream applications, and space-tech entrepreneurship, the industry now requires interdisciplinary talent proficient not only with technical expertise but also with technical expertise but also with competencies in regulatory frameworks, systems integration, and business strategy.

Bridging the gap between academia, industry, and government through targeted skilling, upskilling, and industry-aligned education is essential to unlocking India’s full potential as a leading space-faring nation.

This approach will also ensure inclusive and sustainable growth in this dynamic and competitive sector.

The session will focus on:

• Current and future skill demands across India’s space ecosystem
• Strategies to align academia, industry, and government to close existing skill and knowledge gaps
• Innovative education and training models for workforce development
• Private sector roles in promoting STEM and space careers especially for women, supportive policies, international collaboration for knowledge exchange
• Upskilling professionals to meet the evolving need of the space economy.