BT Exclusive: From JEE Tutor to Defense Tech Founder, How olee.space Delivered One of India’s First Launch Built Laser Weapons

Where is India’s deep tech innovation going? A possible answer lies in the trajectory of olee.space, which has moved from lab-scale work to live military demonstrations in the short term – highlighting how quickly private actors are entering strategic fields such as directed energy and optical communications.

Founded in 2023 by James Solomon and Suman Hiremath in Pune, the start-up has commercialized two products in the last six months, Solomon told Business Today in an exclusive interaction. These include a laser communication system and a laser-based directed energy weapon. Both were unveiled at an optics symposium in Prayagraj, attended by Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Yogi Adityanath, Defense Minister Rajnath Singh and army chiefs.

« We’ve commercialized both laser communications and laser weapons in the last six months, » Solomon said, adding that the company has generated about $0.5 million in that time — unusually fast growth for a deep-tech defense venture.

Olee.space built a laser weapon system with five power levels from 2 to 50 kilowatts. Less than 3 second switching time, compatible with any radar network.

The start-up navigates India’s complex procurement ecosystem by working through larger defense companies rather than directly with the armed forces. « If you only depend on direct orders from the military, it’s very difficult to stay a deep tech startup. You have to build viable revenue streams early, » Solomon noted. The current order has been secured through a partnership with an Indian defense company, which he declined to name.

The startup has so far raised about $3 million from investors including IIMA Ventures and Rockstud Capital, and investor interest continues to grow.

The foundation reflects a broader shift in India’s innovation landscape. Solomon, a materials science graduate from IIT Bombay, started working in defense technology in his second year of university through internships and built capabilities long before the company officially took shape.

Today, olee.space has a 25-member engineering team. According to Solomon, several members of the team have experience in organizations like BEL and DRDO and are largely driven by the passion to build indigenous technologies. Hailing from a humble background, Solomon said he supported himself in the early days by tutoring JEE aspirants — an experience that shaped his approach to building the business.