Computer vision for smart waste management

This AI system helps waste management teams boost efficiency

Spotted: Modern waste management systems face several challenges, including inefficient sorting processes and excessive waste generation. These challenges make waste sorting both slower and more expensive, and come with environmental and health risks. Now, startup Trashify hopes to make the whole process smoother.

The Estonian company does this by completely automating data collection, which is typically a manual and time-consuming task. Instead, Trashify uses a cutting-edge AI-powered computer vision system that’s designed to accurately identify 100 per cent of the waste on the sorting line in real time.

As waste is scanned, a live visual update can be viewed on the user’s customisable dashboard, which can be used to spot broader trends over time, track revenue, and generate up-to-date reports automatically. According to Co-Founder Nikhita Bhagwat, this “consistent, accurate data and actionable insights” will “[enhance] waste categorisation, [improve] material recovery, and [support] better decision-making.”

The system can be retrofitted without any changes to the existing sorting line infrastructure. Once installed, users can customise the technology to suit their own needs, material stream analysis, and tracking requirements.

Trashify has raised an undisclosed amount in a pre-seed funding round and is working to scale its solution across Europe and expand globally. Bhagwat says the company plans “to secure additional partnerships with multiple industry players to increase the adoption of our platform (…) We also aim to raise additional funding to accelerate our market expansion and pilot new projects in industries with high waste output.”

Written By: Lisa Magloff