Waste technology provider Glacier has raised US$4.5m (£3.4m) in seed funding with its robot, which can sort 30 different item types, set to enter the market.
Its robot is designed to cost up to 60% less than other recycling platforms, while matching or exceeding performance. Glacier’s robot is also less than half the size of its peers, requiring minimal facility retrofits to install.
The start-up added many recycling robots have a payback period of up to 10 years across hardware and retrofit costs, but its solution can pay back in as little as one year.
“Almost every facility is interested in robotic sorters, but they’ve assumed robots are out of reach because of high cost and inconsistent ROI. Customers are shocked when they learn what Glacier offers,” said Rebecca Hu, co-founder of Glacier.
Additionally, the system harnesses computer vision to power real-time waste intelligence, providing facilities and municipalities with in-depth insights into their waste stream composition, and identifying new opportunities for improved staffing and technology across the industry.
“When people think about fighting climate change, recycling is usually not the first thing that comes to mind,” added Glacier co-founder, Areeb Malik.
“But recycling is actually one of the only climate solutions that can deliver significant impact immediately, because all the necessary infrastructure either already exists or is emerging now, like our technology.”
This round was led by New Enterprise Associates (NEA), with participation by prominent leaders in industry, sustainability, and technology, including former GE CEO Jeff Immelt, climate investor and former climate policymaker Sierra Peterson, and former Uber CPO Manik Gupta.
Ann Bordetsky, partner at NEA, commented: “Solving the recycling industry’s acute labour shortages with intelligent robotics and AI is a massive commercial opportunity but also an important step toward significantly reducing emissions and waste.
“We’re proud to back Glacier’s experienced and passionate team as they introduce automation and data intelligence to an essential industry that we all rely on every day.”
