Experience. Integrity. Vision. The People Driving IAD Forward.

Focused on collaboration, capability-building and compliant execution.

IAD is guided by a leadership team with deep experience across defence operations, industrial engineering, global technology programs and large-scale infrastructure execution. Their combined expertise ensures strategic clarity, disciplined execution and seamless collaboration with international OEMs. With a shared commitment to India’s self-reliance and aerospace excellence, they drive IAD’s mission to build world-class unmanned systems from Indian soil.

Suumit Gupta - Founder & CEO of IAD

Suumit Gupta

Founder & Chief Executive Officer

Serial entrepreneur (25+ years) across IT, media, and advertising. Proven track record of establishing and scaling technology-led businesses. Expertise in negotiation, government liaison, partnership development, and designing long-term strategic roadmaps. Vision for IAD: Establish Uttar Pradesh as a global UAV hub, reduce India’s dependence on imports, and build a company for trust, innovation, and national strength.

Bharat Salhotra - Senior Leadership/Board at IAD

Bharat Salhotra

Senior Leadership / Board

Sloan Fellow with MBA from MIT. Former MD, Alstom India & South Asia, where he established Alstom Transport as a market leader in Urban Mobility solutions. Led delivery of India’s first “Make in India” metro trains and set up Alstom’s largest engineering design centre outside France. Distinguished career across Civil Services, Ministry of Railways, World Bank, and others.

Pritam Kumar - Senior Leadership/Board at IAD

Pritam Kumar

Senior Leadership / Board

Seasoned professional (40+ years) in the infrastructure sector. Graduate in Electrical Engineering from IIT and MBA-qualified. Experienced in engineering design, testing & commissioning, sales, and marketing. Has overseen large-scale national and international infrastructure projects.

KL Viswanathan - Chief Technology Officer at IAD

KL Viswanathan

Chief Technology Officer

Business, Engineering, and Organizational Transformation leader with 40 years of experience across multiple technical domains. Proven track record in Defense & Aerospace and Rail Transportation. Established Global Competency Centers and Centers of Excellence, and led critical programs with disciplined risk and quality governance.

Chirdeep Agarwal
                                      Senior Advisor to the Board

Capt. (IN) Chirdeep Agarwal (Retd.)

Program Manager

Indian Navy Veteran with 25+ years of experience in various cross functional responsibilities. Have led/undertaken Operational, Design, Technical, Project Management and Administrative functions in the Indian Navy. Have proven proficiency in handling large scale technology projects & MRO and have comprehensive knowledge and understanding of formulating and implementing operational models, end product roadmaps. Skilled in resourcefully leading the cross-cultural teams towards accomplishment of the pre-set goals.


Advisory Board

Col (Retd.) Zeev Mivtzar

Business development consultant for Israeli and Indian companies. Until the end of 2024, he served as Chairman & Managing Director, Israel Aerospace India Pvt. Ltd. and IAI Country Head in India.

Lt. Gen TSA Narayanan AVSM (Retd.)

An innovation-driven leader with 40 years of distinguished service in technology, R&D, education & training and MRO. He has served across diverse and challenging terrains, including high-altitude regions in the Northern and Eastern Commands, and held several key leadership positions

Prof. Ananjan Basu

Prof. Ananjan Basu did his B.Tech and M. Tech from IIT Delhi. He completed Ph.D from University of California, Los Angeles in 1998. He heads Centre for Applied research in Electronics (CARE) at IIT Delhi. His areas of interest include - Microwave and millimeter wave engineering.

Prof. Mohan Satyaranjan

CTO IIT Madras Incubation Centre where he mentors new age space and defence companies. He has over 35 years of industry & academia experience. He also serves as Professor of Practice & Chief Solution Architect at IIT, Jammu

Dr. SB Singh

Outstanding Scientist and Ex Director DRDO at Naval Materials Research Lab. Having about 40 years of experience in Research & Development and also in management at various establishments of Defence Research & Dev Organisation (DRDO), Ministry of Defence.

UAV Plane illustration

WHY PARTNER WITH IAD

Strategic Advantage

  • Policy-backed manufacturing base with logistics, skill, and infrastructure advantages.
  • Cost-effective and compliant production leveraging India’s aerospace talent pool.
  • Aligned with Ministry of Defence licensing, offset, and technology transfer policies.
  • Market opportunity: India’s USD 5B UAV market + exports to South Asia, Africa, ASEAN.

TECHNOLOGY COLLABORATION FOCUS

  • Licensed manufacturing of UAV & C-UAV systems for Indian defence.
  • Localization to 60%+ indigenous content as per defence policy.
  • Joint R&D for payloads, AI-enabled navigation, and mission control.
  • Integration capabilities: autonomous flight, data analytics, battlefield processing.

PARTNERSHIP VALUE PROPOSITION

Market Access & Compliance

A trusted gateway to Indian UAV programs, backed by regulatory alignment and corridor-based infrastructure.

Operational Synergy

  • Land secured in UP Defence Corridor.
  • Technical team ready.
  • Strong execution track record of promoters.

Long-Term Vision

Set up a Centre of Excellence for Unmanned Systems.

Mutual Growth

Co-develop next-gen UAVs and counter-drone systems combining global innovation with India’s scale advantages.