Recycleye and the EIC Accelerator: AI Robots That Sort Waste

Recycleye, founded in London in 2019, uses computer vision and robots to identify and pick materials from waste on the conveyor belts of recycling plants. Its QualiBot robot and AI vision systems target aluminium, cartons, plastics, paper and construction waste, and the company says it employs engineers from Cambridge University and Imperial College London.

Recycleye announced in December 2021 that it had been selected for an EIC Accelerator award, a "grant only" award for RESOURCE, recovering target materials from municipal waste with AI. On the EIC's account, the grant was never signed. In a note of 15 September 2022 on the contracts from that cut-off, the European Innovation Council wrote that "Five grant-only projects with United Kingdom beneficiaries have been rejected as Horizon Europe association agreement have not been signed." Recycleye is one of exactly five UK companies selected for grant-only awards at that cut-off, and no RESOURCE project appears in CORDIS, the EU's project database. In February 2023 it raised a $17 million Series A led by DCVC. In April 2026 CP Group acquired a majority stake; Companies House records CP Manufacturing (Europe) Limited as the controlling shareholder from 12 May 2026.

Where Recycleye Stands Today

CP Group, "a San Diego and London-based designer and manufacturer of advanced material recovery facilities", did not disclose the price. Recycleye had 45 employees at the time of the deal, according to the announcement. Since the sale, Companies House shows new directors from the buyer, a reduction of share premium backed by a solvency statement in June 2026 and a new charge registered in June 2026. Recycleye keeps publishing news under its own name, including a case study on robotic carton sorting for Iren in Parma, Italy.

The Technology: Teaching Robots to Recognise Rubbish

By February 2023 Recycleye's systems were installed "in facilities in England, Ireland, Scotland, Germany, Australia, the US and France, with multiple robot orders confirmed in Italy and Belgium". Customers named in its news include Bryson Recycling, which bought further robots, Urbaser in Spain and Tetra Pak, which invested in AI carton sorting at two sites. In 2025 it installed an AI optical sorter for construction waste with STADLER in Germany.

What the EIC Project Promised, and What the Record Shows

RESOURCE aimed to use AI to recover target materials from mixed municipal waste. Recycleye said the EIC money would "contribute to the further development of our AI-powered waste sorting automation solutions". No project results exist to compare with that aim, because on the EIC's own account the grant was rejected and no agreement was signed. UK Research and Innovation ran a Horizon Europe guarantee for applicants unable to receive their Horizon Europe funding while the UK was in the process of associating, which covered EIC Accelerator awards; whether Recycleye claimed it is not public. What the company's own record does show is the technology deployed commercially, alongside venture capital, an announced Innovate UK award and customers.

1. AI sorting in real plantsDelivered7+ countries.
2. Follow-on capitalDelivered$17M Series A.
3. GrowthDelivered15 to 43 staff.
4. The EIC grant itselfRejectedUK association unsigned, per the EIC.

What Has Happened Since the Award

The Money

Recycleye's filed accounts show cash of £12.37 million in September 2023 after the Series A, falling to £7.79 million a year later, and accumulated losses rising from £5.2 million to £9.0 million in that year. The company also announced a £741,000 Innovate UK award in 2022; whether it was paid is not in the sources we could access. No figure for the EIC award has been published, and on the EIC's account no grant agreement was signed, so none of the cash in those accounts came from Brussels. The price CP Group paid is not public.

Why Europe Should Care

The EIC picked a London company that built AI sorting for European recycling plants, then rejected the grant because the UK's association agreement was unsigned. Venture capital and an announced Innovate UK award are the funding the record shows instead, and the company is now majority-owned by CP Group, a US and UK sorting-plant maker. Much of the customer base named in its news is in Europe, which is where the equipment, and the EU's interest in it, remains.

The Verdict

Recycleye has not been asked for comment for this article. The reporting is based on publicly available sources, including company statements, UK company filings and official European Innovation Council documentation.