Software is the Silent Power Behind India’s Space Success, Says Dr. S Somanath
He was delivering key note address at SPM Summit held at IIM Bangalore
Bangalore, 01st March 2025 : “Software development at ISRO has always been an internal responsibility, driven by our own scientists and engineers across domains — from environmental science to physics, computer science, and more. We don’t outsource these critical software systems because the deep integration between science, technology, and applications requires intimate domain understanding” said Dr S Somanath, Former Director of ISRO at Software Product Management Summit held at IIM Bangalore on Saturday.
He was delivering a keynote address on the second day SPM Summit organized by IIMB’S Centre for Software and IT Management along with the International Software Product Management Association (ISPMA). The two day summit was held on 28th February and 1st March, celebrating its 7th edition around the theme ‘Software Product Management Excellence at Scale’.
Dr S Somanath elucidated the evolution of software product management and development for space programs, emphasizing the shift from environmentally focused missions to commercially operated systems.
Further, he said, “Every piece of software, whether for satellite operations, data analysis, or mission simulations, is built in-house to ensure accuracy, security, and scientific rigor. Over the years, we have developed complex software systems for geospatial data portals, disaster management platforms, and climate monitoring tools — all serving governments, researchers, and the public. Our journey in software product development isn’t just about coding; it’s about translating raw scientific data into actionable intelligence. Now, we are also focused on commercializing some of these tools, making them available to Indian institutions and industries to foster innovation across sectors. I believe India’s future in space, technology, and sustainable development will be powered by a strong foundation in software excellence, developed at scale and refined through continuous learning and collaboration.”
His address was followed by the panel discussion titled Disruptive Innovations: How Emerging Technologies are Reshaping Traditional moderated by Deepak Padmanabha, Director, Product Management, SAP Labs India. The panel featured Muralidhar Koteshwar, Co-Founder SimpliTrain, Roopa Jayaraman, Chief Technology Officer, Odessa, Dr. Amitabh Saran, Founder & CEO, Altigreen Propulsion Labs and Chetan J Shirnali, General Partner, CoCreate Ventures. The panelists delved deep into disruptive challenges such as regulatory alignment, consumer preferences, and market readiness, emphasizing the necessity of early adoption and responsible innovation to stay relevant and solve real market problems.
Speaking about Framework For Building Population Scale Systems Ramkumar Arumugam Product Manager, Swiggy, Sharma emphasized the need for standardization, stating, "Make it quantitative. Don’t give an option that you can customize this, you can change this. This is the base product.
Focusing on the current state of mental health services, Vijay Sharma, Co-founder & CTO Silver Oak Health delivered a talk on Mental Health at Scale: Building India's Largest Corporate Mental Health Platform. Deepdiving into evolution and challenges of scaling a mental health service for employees across various industries, he emphasized balancing customization with scalability and compliance.
The afternoon session began with a Panel Discussion on the theme Scaling Product Success: Effective Pricing and Go-to-Market in a Growing Market Moderated by Ankita Parihar Co-founder, Utpan & MyPetz. The panel featured Debajyoti Ray Chaudhuri MD and CEO, NeSL Anuj Magazine Co-Founder and CTO, AI&Beyond Pavan Chandra Boggarapu VP of Product Management, Icertis. The discussion focused on pricing strategies for new digital products, emphasizing the importance of value-based pricing over cost-based models.
Dr. Sudhanshu Mani Retd. General Manager Indian Railways, Leader of Vande Bharat Project gave a special talk on Building an Iconic Brand: Lessons from Vande Bharat Express. He chronicled the journey of Building Vande Bharath which was filled with innovation, curiosity, creativity. Vande Bharath represent spirit of aspirational India
The event concluded with a special fireside chat with Veteran, Wg Cdr. Rakesh Sharma Astronaut, Former IAF officer on the topic ‘Navigating the Future: Resilience and Adaptation in Dynamic Environments’ moderated by Venki Mahadevan, Fellow-British Computer Society Fellow-ISPMA India.
Reminiscing about his journey in space, he vividly elucidated "Forty years back When I went to space, it was not just about floating in zero gravity or looking at Earth from above. It was a moment of realization — how small and fragile our planet is, hanging there in the vastness of space.”
He further shared, ‘From that vantage point, you don’t see borders, you don’t see countries; you see one Earth, one home. And yet, when you return, you see how we have drawn lines across this beautiful planet, dividing ourselves into nations, into groups, into conflicts. It made me realize how precious cooperation is — not just between astronauts on a mission, but between nations, between people, between communities.”
Speaking about the disruption in the globe he said, ‘The world is changing faster than ever before — technology, climate, geopolitics — and if we don’t learn to see our planet the way I saw it, as a single entity, we risk losing the only home we’ve ever known. Space is no longer just about exploration — it’s about survival. The future of humanity depends not on who owns space, but on how we share it, how we collaborate, and how we protect the Earth itself."
When asked about takeaways for the younger generation, he said “When I was in the Air Force, I started from very simple beginnings. What I learned is — anything that looks difficult from the outside, don’t step back. When you jump into it, you realize things are never as hard as they seem."
Since its inception in 2019, the India SPM summit has brought together academics, industry leaders and professionals to cover a wide range of Software Product Management (SPM) topics through keynotes, Deep Learning workshops, panel discussions, fireside chats, presentations on industry best practices and success stories.
About ISPMA
International Software Product Management Association ISPMA® is an open non-profit association of experts, researchers, and industrial professionals fostering software product management excellence across industries.
For more on ISPMA, please visit https://ispma.org
Software is the Silent Power Behind India’s Space Success, Says Dr. S Somanath
He was delivering key note address at SPM Summit held at IIM Bangalore
Bangalore, 01st March 2025 : “Software development at ISRO has always been an internal responsibility, driven by our own scientists and engineers across domains — from environmental science to physics, computer science, and more. We don’t outsource these critical software systems because the deep integration between science, technology, and applications requires intimate domain understanding” said Dr S Somanath, Former Director of ISRO at Software Product Management Summit held at IIM Bangalore on Saturday.
He was delivering a keynote address on the second day SPM Summit organized by IIMB’S Centre for Software and IT Management along with the International Software Product Management Association (ISPMA). The two day summit was held on 28th February and 1st March, celebrating its 7th edition around the theme ‘Software Product Management Excellence at Scale’.
Dr S Somanath elucidated the evolution of software product management and development for space programs, emphasizing the shift from environmentally focused missions to commercially operated systems.
Further, he said, “Every piece of software, whether for satellite operations, data analysis, or mission simulations, is built in-house to ensure accuracy, security, and scientific rigor. Over the years, we have developed complex software systems for geospatial data portals, disaster management platforms, and climate monitoring tools — all serving governments, researchers, and the public. Our journey in software product development isn’t just about coding; it’s about translating raw scientific data into actionable intelligence. Now, we are also focused on commercializing some of these tools, making them available to Indian institutions and industries to foster innovation across sectors. I believe India’s future in space, technology, and sustainable development will be powered by a strong foundation in software excellence, developed at scale and refined through continuous learning and collaboration.”
His address was followed by the panel discussion titled Disruptive Innovations: How Emerging Technologies are Reshaping Traditional moderated by Deepak Padmanabha, Director, Product Management, SAP Labs India. The panel featured Muralidhar Koteshwar, Co-Founder SimpliTrain, Roopa Jayaraman, Chief Technology Officer, Odessa, Dr. Amitabh Saran, Founder & CEO, Altigreen Propulsion Labs and Chetan J Shirnali, General Partner, CoCreate Ventures. The panelists delved deep into disruptive challenges such as regulatory alignment, consumer preferences, and market readiness, emphasizing the necessity of early adoption and responsible innovation to stay relevant and solve real market problems.
Speaking about Framework For Building Population Scale Systems Ramkumar Arumugam Product Manager, Swiggy, Sharma emphasized the need for standardization, stating, "Make it quantitative. Don’t give an option that you can customize this, you can change this. This is the base product.
Focusing on the current state of mental health services, Vijay Sharma, Co-founder & CTO Silver Oak Health delivered a talk on Mental Health at Scale: Building India's Largest Corporate Mental Health Platform. Deepdiving into evolution and challenges of scaling a mental health service for employees across various industries, he emphasized balancing customization with scalability and compliance.
The afternoon session began with a Panel Discussion on the theme Scaling Product Success: Effective Pricing and Go-to-Market in a Growing Market Moderated by Ankita Parihar Co-founder, Utpan & MyPetz. The panel featured Debajyoti Ray Chaudhuri MD and CEO, NeSL Anuj Magazine Co-Founder and CTO, AI&Beyond Pavan Chandra Boggarapu VP of Product Management, Icertis. The discussion focused on pricing strategies for new digital products, emphasizing the importance of value-based pricing over cost-based models.
Dr. Sudhanshu Mani Retd. General Manager Indian Railways, Leader of Vande Bharat Project gave a special talk on Building an Iconic Brand: Lessons from Vande Bharat Express. He chronicled the journey of Building Vande Bharath which was filled with innovation, curiosity, creativity. Vande Bharath represent spirit of aspirational India
The event concluded with a special fireside chat with Veteran, Wg Cdr. Rakesh Sharma Astronaut, Former IAF officer on the topic ‘Navigating the Future: Resilience and Adaptation in Dynamic Environments’ moderated by Venki Mahadevan, Fellow-British Computer Society Fellow-ISPMA India.
Reminiscing about his journey in space, he vividly elucidated "Forty years back When I went to space, it was not just about floating in zero gravity or looking at Earth from above. It was a moment of realization — how small and fragile our planet is, hanging there in the vastness of space.”
He further shared, ‘From that vantage point, you don’t see borders, you don’t see countries; you see one Earth, one home. And yet, when you return, you see how we have drawn lines across this beautiful planet, dividing ourselves into nations, into groups, into conflicts. It made me realize how precious cooperation is — not just between astronauts on a mission, but between nations, between people, between communities.”
Speaking about the disruption in the globe he said, ‘The world is changing faster than ever before — technology, climate, geopolitics — and if we don’t learn to see our planet the way I saw it, as a single entity, we risk losing the only home we’ve ever known. Space is no longer just about exploration — it’s about survival. The future of humanity depends not on who owns space, but on how we share it, how we collaborate, and how we protect the Earth itself."
When asked about takeaways for the younger generation, he said “When I was in the Air Force, I started from very simple beginnings. What I learned is — anything that looks difficult from the outside, don’t step back. When you jump into it, you realize things are never as hard as they seem."
Since its inception in 2019, the India SPM summit has brought together academics, industry leaders and professionals to cover a wide range of Software Product Management (SPM) topics through keynotes, Deep Learning workshops, panel discussions, fireside chats, presentations on industry best practices and success stories.
About ISPMA
International Software Product Management Association ISPMA® is an open non-profit association of experts, researchers, and industrial professionals fostering software product management excellence across industries.
For more on ISPMA, please visit https://ispma.org