Robots have learned how to sort garbage. They are put into commercial operation

At the end of April 2025, the American waste management company Recology Recycling announced the start of commercial operation of special robots for sorting garbage. These machines significantly increase the efficiency of the enterprise.

Robotic sorters are designed by San Francisco-based firm Glacier. Such installations are equipped with a vision system, as well as special algorithms based on artificial intelligence for object recognition. The devices are able to identify and sort more than 30 types of products - from plastic bottles and aluminum cans to certain types of packaging, such as toothpaste tubes, animal food containers, etc.

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Фото: Recology Recycling

Glacier robots are mounted at the Recology facility in King County in Seattle. They are said to be capable of sorting up to 45 items per minute. This eliminates errors associated with the human factor. Glacier says its systems cost half the price of alternative equipment, take up less space and can be installed in less than one day, minimising sorting line downtime.

Data collected by Glacier robots in real time allows you to analyze the effectiveness of work, as well as assess the content of certain materials in the total waste stream. This makes it possible to coordinate operations with commodity prices and predict revenue. Thanks to the use of AI algorithms, the capabilities of robots can improve over time. The introduction of systems reduces energy consumption in the production of certain types of products.

In the case of, for example, an aluminum can, a recycled product requires 93% less energy than a completely new one, says Areeb Malik, co-founder of Glacier.[1]

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