India’s defence startups dive into maritime tech as Navy places orders

India’s defence-tech startups are expanding into maritime technologies, with the Indian Navy placing procurement orders for autonomous vessels, underwater surveillance, and mine-countermeasure systems as maritime security gains strategic importance. The Navy is shifting from a test-bed role to a meaningful customer, exemplified by EyeROV receiving a ₹47-crore order for five Trout systems after iDEX trials. Startups like Ammunic Systems are developing underwater fuzes, while C2C Advanced Systems expands naval deployments and Yaanendriya pitches navigation systems. As of February 2026, 676 startups engaged under iDEX have secured 45 procurement contracts worth about ₹2,326 crore. The focus now moves from proving technology to manufacturing and deploying systems at scale, with the underwater domain remaining less explored than land and aerial sectors.