New Delhi: An underwater robot developed in Kochi and ordered by the Indian Navy was presented to the prime minister, Narendra Modi, and the presidents of Russia, China, Iran, Indonesia and South Africa at the BRICS Bharat Innovates Exposition in New Delhi. Johns T Mathai, co-founder and chief executive of EyeROV, demonstrated the company’s remotely operated vehicle (ROV) technology to the leaders, the company said. EyeROV is registered as IROV Technologies Private Limited and is based at Maker Village in the Kerala Technology Innovation Zone at Kalamassery.
A platform ordered by the Navy, shown on a global stage
At the heart of EyeROV’s showcase was the Trout, a military-grade ROV rated to a depth of 300 metres. The vehicle was developed with the Indian Navy through the Defence India Startup Challenge, and the Navy went on to place an order worth ₹47 crore, which the company announced on September 30, 2025. For a young deep-tech company, an order of that size is a strong endorsement: the platform was built to meet naval requirements and has been backed with public money for defence modernization. The same technology was now in front of leaders from some of the world’s largest economies.
The exposition ran on September 11 and 12 at Bharat Mandapam, alongside the 18th BRICS Summit. The Ministry of Education organized it in coordination with the Ministry of External Affairs, according to a Press Information Bureau release. EyeROV was one of 37 Indian deep-tech startups and ventures on the floor.
Those 37 came from a larger group. The first Bharat Innovates exposition, held in Nice, France, from June 14 to 16, involved 120 startups and ventures, and the New Delhi exhibitors were drawn from that cohort. The exposition was held alongside the BRICS Business Forum on September 11 so that innovators could meet chief executives, investors and business leaders from BRICS member countries.
Leaders at the pavilion
EyeROV’s pavilion was visited by Modi and by Presidents Vladimir Putin of Russia, Xi Jinping of China, Masoud Pezeshkian of Iran, Prabowo Subianto of Indonesia and Cyril Ramaphosa of South Africa, the company said in a release on September 17.
In the release, Mathai called the chance to present the technology to Modi and the other leaders “an absolute honor” and said the interaction pointed to the potential of Indian deep-tech startups internationally.
At the BRICS Business Forum on September 11, Modi said BRICS could help take the innovations of India’s more than 200,000 startups to global markets. According to reports, he asked the BRICS Business Council to back 100 BRICS startups a year in scaling into other member markets and to help build 1,000 new business partnerships annually. He described the Bharat Innovates exposition as a glimpse of India’s innovation capabilities.
The company’s track record
EyeROV was set up by IIT alumni Johns T Mathai and Kannappa Palaniappan P. The Defence Research and Development Organisation was among its earliest buyers, purchasing the company’s Tuna system for its laboratories. The Trout’s development with the Indian Navy, and the order worth ₹47 crore that followed, remain the company’s defining milestones. EyeROV says it has completed more than 150 projects for more than 80 clients.
In February 2026, the company raised ₹13 crore in a pre-series A round co-led by AWE Funds and Unicorn India Ventures. The money is going into research, new product lines and expansion into international markets.