Washington: An Indian team has emerged as a global winner at NASA’s 2025 International Space Apps Challenge for proposing a sovereign, phased-array satellite internet infrastructure aimed at expanding broadband access in remote regions.

The Chennai-based team, Photonics Odyssey, received the Most Inspirational Award for reimagining satellite internet as a national public infrastructure rather than a privately driven service. The project seeks to reduce reliance on ground-based systems and bridge the digital divide for more than 700 million people in India who currently lack broadband connectivity.

According to NASA Space Apps, the winning team comprises Manish D., M. K., Prasanth G., Rajalingam N., Rashi M., and Sakthi R. NASA said the 2025 edition of its flagship global hackathon drew over 114,000 participants across 551 local events in 167 countries and territories.

The winners were selected from more than 11,500 project submissions and evaluated by judges from NASA and its partner organisations.