Venkata Sai Kiran Chakravadhanula

Dr. -Ing. C. V. S. Kiran is Vice-President for Materials and Strategic Initiatives at Skyroot Aerospace and an expert in Metallurgy and Materials sciences. His career bridges research, academia, industry and policy, with impactful contributions across multiple domains.

Dr. Kiran holds a Bachelor's in Metallurgy and Materials Engineering from MGIT-JNTUH, followed by higher studies in Germany at Christian-Albrechts-University(CAU) of Kiel. He earned his Ph.D. in nanocomposites and irradiation, besides receiving the DAAD Award in 2008 for excellence.

Dr. Kiran has worked with premier institutions such as the Karlsruhe Institute of Technology, Indian Space Research Organization(ISRO). Merging research with teaching, he also developed a course on in-situ electron microscopy at TU Darmstadt.As a former scientist at ISRO's Vikram Sarabhai Space Centre, his work on materials characterization supported critical developments in Aerospace. He received the Excellence in Microscopy Award in 2020 from EMSI. Besides contributing to India’s historic first private launch Vikram-S(2022), his expertise spans strategic materials, additive manufacturing and electron microscopy. Deeply committed to national self-reliance, he actively contributes to national and state policy initiatives in various fields. He also collaborates with IN-SPACe, ISPA and CII to shape India’s new space economy.
With over 100 peer-reviewed publications, a patent and a h-index of 41, he is a Fellow of the two Telugu state science academies. Passionate about mentoring and outreach, he also serves as an Adjunct Professor at MGIT and as advisor to various next generation startups. 

Dr. Kiran believes in “One Earth, One Space - Wherever we cross the Kármán line, we must always remember: we are not from different countries - we are from Earth” to shape an inclusive and sustainable future for the advancement of humankind, science and technology. As a Karman Fellow, he looks forward to contributing to global conversations on space, innovation and societal transformation.