Why We Invested in PierSight: Satellites for Ocean Protection

Satellite images of forest fires, rising sea levels, and shifting ice caps have become powerful symbols of our climate crisis. 

But beneath the surface, literally, there’s another story unfolding in our ocean: illegal fishing vessels operating undetected, oil spills damaging coral reefs, and entire ecosystems slipping out of view due to a lack of persistent, accessible surveillance tools.

At Sustainable Ocean Alliance (SOA), we invest in bold, scalable technologies that can accelerate the restoration and protection of ocean health. That’s why SOA and Seabird Ventures are proud to announce our investment in PierSight—a startup building the world’s first maritime-specialized satellite constellation, designed for persistent, high-frequency ocean monitoring accessible and actionable for the world’s coastal nations.

This round welcomes new strategic partners to their investor base, bringing total funding to $8 million.  We’re proud to be part of this strategic raise, joining forces with Crescent Ventures and notable angel investors such as Sahil Lavingya, Natasha Malpani Oswal, and Nandan Reddy. 

RELATED | PIERSIGHT: Adding Strategic Capital and Mission-Aligned Investors

Exposing the ‘Dark Side’ of Ocean Activities

Ocean management today is fundamentally hindered by a data scarcity problem. 

Despite covering over 70% of the Earth’s surface, the ocean is monitored by a fragmented set of tools—occasional flyovers, infrequent satellite passes, and self-reporting systems like AIS (Automatic Identification System)—which vessels can disable at will. 

The result? A massive visibility gap that limits enforcement of illegal fishing, biodiversity monitoring, and rapid disaster response.

The scale of this challenge is staggering. Illegal, unreported, and unregulated (IUU) fishing accounts for up to $23 billion in seafood losses every year—roughly one in every five wild-caught fish. 

Even more concerning, Global Fishing Watch also estimates that 75% of industrial fishing vessels do not appear in public monitoring systems, making ‘dark’ ships invisible to enforcement efforts. Meanwhile, oil spills and illegal oil dumping continue to threaten marine ecosystems. In 2024 alone, six large tanker spills (>700 tonnes) and four medium spills (7–700 tonnes) were recorded globally (source: ITOPF).

Left: Commercial Bottom Trawling Fishing. Right: Deepwater Horizon Oil Spill 2010 (Cred: NY Times). 

Most current ocean monitoring tools:

• Do not provide frequent or real-time data

• Struggle in poor weather or at night

• Are prohibitively expensive, especially for governments in the Global South

• Are not built for ocean-specific challenges like coral reef protection or IUU vessel detection.

This blind spot isn’t just an ocean problem—it’s a climate, security, and equity problem. If nations can’t see what’s happening in their own waters, they can’t enforce laws, respond to crises, or protect biodiversity. We urgently need tools that democratize access to persistent, high-resolution maritime data and empower frontline actors to take meaningful action.

A Satellite Constellation for Full, Persistent Ocean Monitoring

PierSight is addressing this challenge head-on. Based out of India, this ‘deep tech’ company is building a constellation of miniaturized satellites that integrate Synthetic Aperture Radar (SAR), AIS, and ADS-B technologies on a single platform, designed specifically for persistent, all-weather, all-time ocean surveillance. Unlike traditional satellites, PierSight can see through clouds and darkness, offering real-time updates critical for ocean monitoring.

Visualization of Peirsight Satellites in Practice. Images Courtesy of Piersight.

What sets PierSight apart is not just their technology, but how purpose-built it is for the ocean:

• Persistent Coverage: Their constellation design will enable revisit times as short as 30 minutes, allowing for real-time updates across key regions, even with just a few satellites in orbit.

• All-Weather Monitoring: Unlike traditional optical satellites, PierSight uses radar technology, which can create high-resolution images and “see” through clouds, smoke, and darkness—ensuring data availability regardless of weather or time of day.

• Modular Constellation: Their stepwise deployment strategy allows PierSight to start commercializing with 2-3 satellites, then scale to 32 for full coverage and performance. This reduces capital risk and shortens the timeline to impact.

• Dual Impact & Commercial Utility: From detecting “dark” ships involved in illegal fishing to mapping marine oil spills, PierSight’s applications are as wide-ranging as they are essential. Their tech also supports port logistics, shipping route optimization, and emissions tracking.

Ocean Health Launches into Orbit 

As an ocean impact investor, SOA’s decision to invest in PierSight was informed by three intersecting insights—and shaped by a tailored diligence process. 

We engaged directly with lead investors and potential customers in our network, assessed alignment with SOA’s core impact areas, and decided that PierSight’s approach is highly scalable for ocean conservation impacts via their global ocean monitoring ambitions—an area where conservationists, governments, and big ocean industries are all eager to advance. 

Three key insights that led SOA & Seabird Ventures to invest:

1. A High-Leverage Tool for Ocean Impact

PierSight’s constellation will enable unprecedented surveillance of Marine Protected Areas (MPAs), Exclusive Economic Zones (EEZs), and high-risk spill corridors. Governments and NGOs will be able to:

• Detect IUU fishing in near real-time

• Monitor oil spills and respond faster to ecological disasters

• Geofence sensitive marine habitats like coral reefs and spawning grounds

• Track vessels that disable their AIS systems, improving compliance and safety.

We see this as a force multiplier for the broader ocean community. PierSight’s data will empower marine scientists, regulators, Indigenous fishery managers, and environmental NGOs to act on new levels of evidence.

2. A Scalable Business in the Space-Based Ocean Data Market

With an estimated $50+ billion TAM across fisheries enforcement, marine pollution, shipping, and satellite data services, PierSight is tapping into a market hungry for better tools. Their pricing model will enable affordable access for underfunded agencies in the Global South—without sacrificing commercial viability.

The company has also built impressive traction ahead of full constellation deployment:

• Raised a Seed Round of $6.6 million from top-tier investors, including Alpha Wave Ventures, Elevation Capital, Techstars, and All In Capital, with additional backing from prominent angels such as Andreas Klinger, Vismay Agrawal, and Nikunj Jalan.

• Achieved dual recognition by winning both the U.S. and India challenges at the prestigious DIU-IDEX Maritime Challenge (INDUS-X), validating PierSight's innovative approach to oil spill detection and maritime surveillance. 

• Successfully launched 'Varuna', India's first private SAR satellite, aboard ISRO's PSLV-C60 mission. This in-orbit demonstrator validated critical subsystems—including SAR electronics and software-defined radio—marking a significant milestone in PierSight's journey. For a full explanation of the mission, check this video. 

• Completed a Preliminary Design Review (PDR) for Varuna 2.0, PierSight’s first commercial satellite, with validation from a distinguished committee of former Indian Space Research Organization (ISRO) and NASA scientists, equating 400+ years of combined experience. This successful review confirmed design soundness and mission readiness, while surfacing key improvements ahead of full-scale development.

• Developed a robust commercial pipeline across government regulators, port logistics, and environmental sectors, totaling tens of millions in letters of interest. 

3. An Exceptional Technical Team with Deep Space and Sales Expertise

PierSight was co-founded by Gaurav Seth (ex-ISRO) and Vinit Bansal (ex-National Instruments). Gaurav is a former project lead for India’s SAR-based Venus mission, and Vinit brings expertise in defense and hardware prototyping after having handled tech sales in the defense and space sector for NI. 

The concept for PierSight emerged after they built a working prototype for maritime monitoring in just three weeks—a process that typically takes over a year. Their complementary skills and shared vision laid the foundation for PierSight’s mission, and we are already impressed with their level of execution and capital efficiency.

They’re now supported by a growing team of 30+ engineers, operators, and advisors with experience across satellite systems, B2B commercialization, and mission planning—positioning the company to scale rapidly and effectively.

Piersight Co-Founders Gaurav Seth (left) and Vinit Bansal (right). Image Courtesy of Piersight. 

Our Vision: A More Visible, Defendable Ocean

As an organization rooted in the restoration of ocean health, SOA has long championed startups that address deep structural gaps in the ocean economy. PierSight joined our Ecopreneur Network in 2024, and we’ve been fortunate to witness their growth over the past year. 

Now, as investors, we’re even more excited to help scale their vision.

With their constellation, PierSight will build the kind of infrastructure the ocean sector desperately needs: tools that level the playing field for enforcement, unlock better marine policy, and drive data-informed restoration at scale.

Ocean health can’t be restored if we can’t see what’s happening. With PierSight, we move one step closer to a world where our ocean is not just protected in theory—but defended in practice. 

We’re proud to back PierSight as part of our commitment to the future of our ocean. 

If you're investing in or building solutions at the intersection of space, climate, and the new blue economy, let’s connect. Send a message to Alicia Hernández Arriaga at alicia@soalliance.org. 

— The SOA and Seabird Ventures Team