AMP Robotics has raised US$55m (£40.4m) in funding for its AI-based recycling robot.
In a Series B investment round led by XN, the recycling robotics company secured funds to scale up its business operations and develop new AI applications that can integrate into material-recycling facilities.
This new round of funding follows US$16m (£11.6m) in Series A financing led by Sequoia Capital in November 2019.
AMP, which has developed a three-armed picker machine that harnesses AI to sort recyclables, said it aims to increase its customers’ recycling rates.
The US start-up’s high-speed robotic system segregates a wide range of materials including metals, batteries, plastics, wires, cardboard, aluminium, metal, mixed wood, and concrete.
It can also sort plastic by colour, clarity and opacity through computer vision and deep learning to distinguish visual attributes found in the waste stream, storing data about each item it perceives, from a bottlecap to a coffee pod.
“We are blessed with an outstanding group of new investors, a mission-driven team, and amazing customers,” said Matanya Horowitz, founder and CEO of AMP Robotics.
“We are putting this next round of investment to work immediately to create novel technology for the waste industry and meaningfully contribute to reducing society’s impact on the environment.”
As previously reported by Robotics & Innovation, AMP recently extended its ability to identify and pick recyclables at brand level and is working with consumer packaged goods companies including beverage giant Keurig Dr Pepper.
And in late 2020, AMP signed a long-term agreement with Waste Connections to deploy 24 AI-guided robotics systems, the company’s largest contract to date.
