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India’s manufacturing story is moving beyond assembling finished products. Startups are developing specialised components, materials and engineering systems that power industries ranging from electric mobility and aerospace to energy storage and computing infrastructure. The semiconductor industry offers one indication of this shift. At SEMICON India 2026 in September, the government outlined the next phase of the India Semiconductor Mission, spanning chip design, materials, manufacturing equipment, fabrication, advanced packaging and research. The push reflects India's ambition to build domestic capabilities across the semiconductor value chain. Policy support is also extending to other manufacturing-intensive sectors. On October 13, the Ministry of Heavy Industries extended the bid submission deadline for a programme to establish 10 GWh of advanced chemistry cell manufacturing capacity for grid-scale energy storage. The initiative is part of the government’s effort to strengthen domestic battery manufacturing. These developments are creating opportunities for startups building real technologies behind industrial growth. However, developing a promising technology is only the starting point. Startups must validate their products, establish reliable production processes and translate engineering capabilities into commercially viable businesses. Against this backdrop, Inc42 is back with the October edition of its ‘Five Manufacturing Startups To Watch’. This edition features Nautical Wings Aerospace, Magron Novus, NuSynth, Refroid and Xbattery Energy, five startups working across aerospace propulsion, electric motorcycles, chemical process innovation, data centre cooling and battery management systems. With that said, here are the five manufacturing startups that caught our eye in October. Editor's Note: This list is not a ranking. It is a curated selection of manufacturing startups that have stood out to the Inc42 editorial team this month. Nautical Wings Aerospace | Developing Electric Propulsion Mechanism For Aircraft Aircraft propulsion systems must balance power, efficiency and reliability against strict constraints on weight and operating conditions. As electric aviation and unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) evolve, developing propulsion systems suited to these requirements could open up opportunities for specialised aerospace manufacturers. Bengaluru-based Nautical Wings Aerospace is developing electric propulsion systems, motors and composite components for aircraft and UAVs. Founded in 2020, the startup also offers custom engineering capabilities for aviation applications. Its product portfolio includes fixed-wing UAV propulsion configurations with rotor sizes of up to 120 inches and power outputs of up to 150 kW. The company's work spans electric motors, propulsion integration and lightweight composite components, bringing several critical elements of aircraft propulsion engineering under one roof. Its focus is on developing indigenous hardware for aviation and unmanned platforms. Nautical Wings operates in India's emerging electric aviation market, which is projected to grow at a CAGR of 7.8% through 2029. Its progress will depend on validating its systems for specific aircraft applications and establishing repeatable manufacturing processes. Magron Novus | Fully Forged Carbon Fibre EVs Building an electric motorcycle involves more than replacing a petrol engine with an electric motor. Manufacturers must engineer the powertrain, battery architecture and vehicle controls to deliver the performance riders expect. Bengaluru-based Magron Novus is attempting to bring these elements together through its own technology stack. The startup is developing electric motorcycles and related technologies, including wireless power transfer and connected riding features. Founded in 2022, the startup showcases two platforms: the C-20, designed for everyday riding, and the H-35, aimed at the performance segment. According to the company's published specifications, the C-20 features a 22.5 kW motor, while the H-35 has a 35 kW motor. Its proprietary technology stack includes the Apex Drive system, battery architecture and vehicle intelligence features. The startup is also developing wireless power transfer technology and a virtual assistant to enhance the charging and riding experience. E2Ws command a significant share of India's booming electric vehicle market, which is poised to reach $132.2 Bn by 2030, according to Inc42's India's Electric Vehicle Startup Landscape Report. A healthy uptick in sales supports this market's rally. In September, total E2W sales stood at 2.07 Lakh units, a 12.2% month-on-month increase from 1.84 Lakh units registered in August. Magron's ability to turn its technology into reliable, manufacturable products and bring its motorcycles to market will determine how it develops in India's increasingly competitive electric mobility sector. NuSynth | Re-Engineering Chemical Manufacturing Processes Chemical manufacturers often face challenges when developing processes for complex molecules. Existing synthesis routes can involve high material costs, difficult reaction conditions, safety risks or production steps that become harder to control at commercial scale. Improving these processes can therefore be as important as developing new chemical products. Bengaluru-based NuSynth Technologies is a chemical manufacturing startup focused on process innovation for complex chemistry. Founded in 2026, the company aims to redesign chemical synthesis rather than rely solely on incremental improvements to existing methods. Its initial focus areas include pharmaceutical intermediates and electronic chemicals, with the ambition to develop proprietary process technologies for global markets. The startup combines chemical research with an AI-enabled platform that uses experimental data to guide subsequent research and development. By recording experimental outcomes as structured data, the platform aims to prioritise future experiments and accelerate the development and commercial scale-up of chemical processes. NuSynth's operations include an R&D facility and pilot plant in Mysuru, alongside a Bengaluru facility under development. The company also reports working with more than 20 manufacturing partners across India, providing a potential route from process development to commercial production. Its services include custom synthesis, process development, scale-up and commercial supply. NuSynth operates in India's speciality chemicals market, valued at approximately $37 Bn in FY25, according to NITI Aayog's report on India's chemical industry. The segment accounts for around 18% of the domestic chemicals industry and includes high-value products used in pharmaceuticals, electronics and other industrial applications. Refroid | Developing Cooling Systems For AI Infrastructure Data centres require cooling systems. As facilities accommodate increasingly intensive workloads, conventional air-cooling approaches can face efficiency and capacity constraints. Liquid cooling offers another route, transferring heat more directly from computing equipment to a cooling system. Hyderabad-based Refroid Technologies is an industrial machinery manufacturer developing cooling solutions for data centres and other mission-critical computing applications. Founded in 2021, the company focuses on liquid cooling technologies for hyperscale facilities, edge computing and high-performance computing environments. Its technology portfolio includes immersion cooling, direct-contact liquid cooling, coolant distribution units and hybrid load banks used in testing environments. These systems are designed to support the thermal management requirements of high-performance computing. Refroid has also highlighted its work on indigenous cooling technologies. The company announced a collaboration with Bharat Petroleum Corporation to develop an indigenous liquid coolant and has introduced domestically developed coolant distribution units for liquid-cooled data centres. The startup operates in India’s data centre industry, where installed capacity increased from approximately 375 MW in 2020 to around 1,500 MW by 2025, according to the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology. Xbattery Energy | Building Indigenous Battery Management Systems Batteries are central to electric vehicles and renewable energy storage, but their performance and safety depend on the electronics that monitor and control them. Much of this technology remains import-dependent, creating an opportunity for Indian manufacturers to develop indigenous battery management systems. Hyderabad-based Xbattery Energy is a deeptech startup manufacturing battery management system (BMS) electronics for electric vehicles and energy storage systems. Founded in 2024 by Satish Reddy, Sonu Mishra and Varshith Veeramaneni, the company aims to replace imported electronics with locally developed hardware and software. Its flagship platform, BharatBMS, supports applications ranging from 5 kWh home backup systems to megawatt-scale energy storage and high-voltage electric vehicles. The company also offers battery monitoring through a cloud platform, allowing customers to track battery parameters and diagnostics. Its customers include automotive and battery manufacturers, although names remain confidential under non-disclosure agreements. Xbattery operates in India’s BMS market, valued at approximately $281.6 Mn in 2024 and projected to reach $699.6 Mn by 2029, growing at a compound annual growth rate of 20%, according to MarketsandMarkets' India BMS market report. The market covers electronics used to monitor and manage rechargeable batteries across electric mobility and energy storage applications. With inputs from Venu Rathore & Akshit Pushkarna Edited by Shishir Parasher Creatives by Abhyam Gusai
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