Dutch startup inSystem.io unveils AI-powered Gravity Sorter to extract batteries from municipal waste at industrial scale

inSystem.io's Gravity Sorter can remove up to 50 batteries per second from mixed waste streams while achieving purity rates above 96 percent during recent facility trials. The system processes materials in free fall, with an AI vision system operating at up to 400 frames per second tracking each object individually during descent and analyzing movement, rotation, and trajectory in real time.

The technology addresses a persistent recycling challenge: only around 50 percent of portable batteries are recycled in the Netherlands, while global recycling rates are estimated at roughly 15 percent. A single fully loaded municipal waste collection vehicle contains an average of 252 portable batteries, which become difficult to separate after shredding and magnetic sorting and pose contamination and fire risks.

The system can process up to six tons of material per hour and is designed to integrate into existing recycling lines without major redesign work. Beyond batteries, it is intended for e-waste fragments, plastics, non-ferrous metals, construction waste, and incinerator bottom ash recovery, and can be upgraded with additional sensing technologies including NIR, SWIR, LWIR, and X-ray imaging.

inSystem.io generated strong interest during IFAT Munich 2026, with recycling operators and plant engineers from Europe, Canada, Australia, and Latin America requesting pilot evaluations. The company is now accepting pilot projects and early commercial orders.