Airbound, an Indian startup focused on drones, has secured $8.65 million in seed funding with Physical Intelligence co-founder Lachy Groom leading the investment. This comes as Airbound initiates a drone-delivery pilot with a private hospital, striving for a delivery cost of one cent using its very light, blended-wing-body aircraft.
Participants in the seed round include Humba Ventures, Lightspeed Venture Partners (Airbound’s current investor), and key figures from Tesla, SpaceX, and Anduril.
Airbound, established in 2020 by Naman Pushp (who was 15 then and is now 20), has engineered an aircraft employing a tail-sitter design (where the drone is positioned vertically and launches like a rocket) and a carbon fiber frame. The aim is to deliver parcels at a cost up to 20 times less than traditional methods and substantially cheaper than existing drone delivery systems. The aircraft features a blended-wing-body design with a pair of propellers, differing from the more typical quadcopter setup. This design allows the aircraft to launch like a rocket and fly similarly to a plane.
Airbound’s objective is to achieve one-cent deliveries by fundamentally rethinking how energy is utilized for moving goods, according to founder and CEO Pushp in an interview.
Pushp explained to TechCrunch that electric two-wheelers in India are commonly used for deliveries of payloads under 3 kilograms, despite the vehicles weighing around 150 kilograms (331 pounds) and incurring energy costs of approximately ₹2 (about $0.02) per kilometer. Airbound intends to decrease this cost to as little as 10 paise (approximately $0.001) by utilizing its drone, known as the TRT. This drone is specifically designed for small payloads and eliminates the need for a human driver, thereby reducing total transport weight by roughly 30 times. Pushp noted that this results in a 20-fold reduction in energy cost per kilometer, making one-cent drone delivery a viable goal.
“There are significant gaps between the current state of drones and their potential,” the founder stated. “The fact that you need four kilograms of drone to lift just one kilogram of payload is unacceptable. The concept of range is flawed. Drones currently lack a sense of aerodynamic efficiency.”
The aircraft’s blended-wing design, along with its rocket-like launch, removes the necessity for extra propellers and heavy, moving components. This enhances aerodynamic efficiency compared to traditional quadcopters. By avoiding propellers that interfere with airflow over the wing, the drone maintains a superior lift-to-drag ratio, which lowers the thrust needed to remain airborne and makes forward flight considerably more energy-efficient, according to the founder’s statements to TechCrunch.
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The initial version of Airbound’s drone has a weight of 3.3 pounds and can carry a payload of up to 2.2 pounds. The startup plans for its subsequent version to support a 6.6-pound payload while weighing only 2.6 pounds.
A prototype of the second version is anticipated to be ready and flying by mid-next year, with production slated for the first quarter of 2027, according to Pushp.
“When you delve into autonomy, logistics simply becomes a physics problem. It is about efficiency and weight. Achieving a lower weight and higher efficiency than competitors leads to success,” Pushp explained.
Inspired by a Zipline video during the COVID-19 lockdown in 2020, he started working on Airbound. He submitted an early prototype—constructed from 2D slices held together by tape and toothpicks, then sanded to resemble a fiberglass body—to a hackathon, winning a $500 grant. This inspired him to apply to Y Combinator, but he was not accepted. Instead, he secured a $1,000 grant from the 1517 Fund in 2021, followed by a $25,000 check from Brand Capital and a $12,000 grant from Emergent Ventures.
Pushp received a term sheet from Lightspeed at age 17, but waited to sign until after his 18th birthday. “That was the first legally binding document I ever signed,” he recalled.
The aircraft utilizes lithium-ion batteries, instead of the more frequently used lithium-polymer battery pack. Pushp stated that lithium-ion batteries typically have a cycle life of 500 to 800 cycles, while lithium polymer batteries last around 100–200 cycles.
“The most substantial cost in operating these drones turns out to be the expense of replacing their batteries,” he said.
Airbound spends $2,000 to produce each drone and approximately ₹24 (around $0.27) for each delivery. The startup’s goal is to decrease the delivery cost to below ₹5 (roughly $0.05) by the close of 2026. Furthermore, it anticipates reaching one million deliveries daily by mid-2027. To achieve this, Airbound plans to increase its manufacturing capacity to over 100 drones per day, a significant increase from the current production rate of one drone per day at its Bengaluru facility.
Airbound has commenced its initial pilot program with Narayana Health in Bengaluru. This three-month program will focus on delivering medical logistics, with a goal of completing ten daily deliveries of critical supplies, including medical tests and blood samples.
However, Airbound is also targeting other sectors such as quick commerce, food deliveries, and “other minor areas of last-mile” delivery, according to the founder’s conversation with TechCrunch.
Airbound also intends to expand beyond India after reaching one million deliveries per day, with plans to enter the U.S. market within three years. Concurrently, the startup is in discussions with regulatory bodies, including India’s Directorate General of Civil Aviation, to initiate its flights soon.
To date, Airbound has accumulated over $10 million in total funding and comprises a team of 50 employees.
The latest funding round is earmarked for expanding manufacturing capabilities and scaling operations. The startup stated that the pilot program will also aid in refining its service and lowering costs, which will better prepare it for broader market acceptance in 2026.
