growX Ventures Scores 17x Return on Pixxel Partial Exit
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growX Ventures Fund, an early-stage B2B-focused venture capital fund, has announced a partial exit from Pixxel, the hyperspectral imaging spacetech startup, netting a stellar 17x return on invested capital and a 68% IRR over 5.5 years. The milestone validates growX's early conviction in deeptech at a time when India's private space sector was largely untested.
The investment dates back to 2019, when Pixxel was just an audacious idea. growX Ventures Fund was the first institutional investor to back the Bengaluru-based company, betting on its long-term vision to build a full-stack SpaceTech business.
"When we invested in Pixxel in 2019, there was no playbook for DeepTech in India—no exits, no benchmarks, and certainly no roadmap for building a full-stack SpaceTech company," said Sheetal Bahl, Partner at growX Ventures Fund and Merak Ventures. "But the idea was audacious, and the clarity was unmistakable—from a 2050 vision to the first 50 hires already mapped out. Watching that conviction translate into real outcomes is deeply meaningful."
Since then, Pixxel has raised USD 95 million across nine funding rounds, with backers including GIC, Google, Radical Ventures, and Seraphim. The company's hyperspectral imaging satellites are currently being piloted across agriculture, mining, energy, and environmental sectors, with full-scale commercial deployment expected once its mini-constellation of six satellites goes live later this year.
"For an early-stage fund, translating bold, pioneering bets into realised returns is a powerful validation," said Manu Rikhye, Partner at growX Ventures Fund I and Merak Ventures. "This partial exit allows us to return capital while continuing to stay meaningfully invested in Pixxel's long-term growth."
This marks the first liquidity event for growX Fund I, a USD 25 million vehicle launched in 2019. The fund has backed 17 B2B startups, including Bellatrix Aerospace, Progcap, Zuddl, AdvantageClub.ai, CynLr, Lightspeed Photonics, and 4baseCare, and remains significantly invested in the next wave of deeptech innovation.
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