Deepinder Goyal’s LAT Aerospace acquires Gurugram-based startup Sharang Shakti to boost in-house defence capabilities
LAT Aerospace, the aerospace venture of Zomato founder Deepinder Goyal, which is owned by Eternal, has acquired a Gurugram-based early-stage defense robotics startup called Sharang Shakti, as the company plans to ramp up its domestic defense capabilities, according to a social media post on X.
In his latest post, Deepinder Goyal announced the latest acquisition move of LAT Aerospace on Tuesday, February 24, 2026 and said that this move is the first step towards developing indigenous defense capabilities.
“LAT Aerospace has acquired Gurgaon-based early-stage defense robotics startup Sharang Shakti. This is our first step towards building indigenous defense capabilities along with our long-term mission to develop next-generation civil aviation platforms from India,” Goyal said in his post.
‘Slowly but surely’ – LAT Aerospace’s goal
LAT Aerospace founder Deepinder Goyal also said the company aims to “slowly but surely” develop its in-house capabilities to eventually deploy advancements in both defense and civilian programs over time.
“By bringing Sharang Shakti to LAT, we are developing these capabilities in-house from first principles and intend to deploy them to both defense and civilian programs over time,” Deepinder Goyal said in his post on X.
The founder also emphasized that the civil aviation and defense sector in India are often considered separate, but at the basic level, technology is shared between autonomy, perception, sensing, navigation, guidance and control systems.
Goyal’s idea behind the startup
Mint In early January 2026, Deepinder reported that Goyal’s ‘radical’ idea was to develop technology to eliminate the need for elaborate airport infrastructure in India.
Deepinder Goyal, in a podcast with YouTuber Raj Shamani, explained his idea behind the aviation startup, aiming to change the aviation industry by providing services such as takeoff and landing capabilities within 20 metres.
“Takeoff and landing are within, say, 20 metres, which will eliminate the need for elaborate airport infrastructure. This has never been done before in the world. This is radical from an aviation perspective,” Goyal said.
This idea arises in an environment where people go to an airport, wait to board a plane, and wait 3 hours before a 3-hour flight. Goyal called it ‘pointless’ as it takes the same time to drive from Delhi to Chandigarh.
LAT Aerospace is an aviation startup co-founded by Deepinder Goyal and Surobhi Das in January 2025, according to the company’s website. The company is building a new generation of Short Takeoff and Landing (STOL) aircraft that will be designed to operate compact air stops rather than traditional airports.
