Anand Mahindra praises IIT-Madras startup for innovative electric sea gliders

Waterfly Technologies, a startup incubated at IIT-Madras, is developing electric sea gliders as an alternative form of travel to traditional airplanes and ferries. The designs which were recently showcased at Aero India 2025 in Bengaluru caught the attention of Mahindra Group chairman, Anand Mahindra on X.

Mr. Mahindra commended the premier Indian institute saying, “IIT Madras promises to rival silicon valley in terms of nurturing startups…! Almost every week there’s news of a new ‘TechVenture.’

The sea gliders which are meant to take off from water bodies and fly at an altitude of about four metres can fly up to 150 metres. They can touch speeds of up to 500 km/hour. 

The startup is expected to release a prototype of the gliders by the end of this year. Mr. Mahindra praised the design tweeting, “What I like about this one is not just the promise of exploitation of our vast waterways, but the fact that the design of the craft is stunning! Design Rules!”

Waterfly is also building a battery-powered version of the design which has a range of 500 km while also working on a hydrogen-electric version expected to cover 2,000 km.