TeknTrash Robotics, Sharp Group partner on humanoid robot pilot

TeknTrash Robotics, a U.K.-based company pioneering artificial intelligence- (AI-) powered robotics and motion intelligence for the waste management and recycling industry, has partnered with Sharp Group, a leading environmental services provider in the U.K., to test ALPHA (Automated Litter Processing Humanoid Assistant), a humanoid robot designed to sort waste and recyclables.

Sharp Group’s facility in Rainham, East London, processes 2,800 metric tons of material per week, including plastic, paper, glass, metal, stone and more. Frontline workers have been equipped with virtual reality Meta Quest 3 headsets that record their movements during daily operations. Using an app developed by TeknTrash, Sharp Group workers are capturing detailed motion data—including posture, hand and finger articulation, and synchronized video—to train AI robotic models. 

Through the partnership, which began in April, data will be captured for six months. After passing quality metrics, the data will be fed into NVIDIA Isaac Lab, a leading robot training platform, to generate a model that will feed back into an ALPHA humanoid, mimicking the same movements. The humanoid robot can take over sorting tasks that are repetitive, unsanitary and hazardous, TeknTrash says, adding that the waste and recycling sector is among the most hazardous industries in the U.K.

In addition to automation, ALPHA enables real-time, item-level material data collection. Having accurate insights across the material stream will enable recycling operators and policymakers to comply with extended producer responsibility regulations, track material flows from cradle to grave, conduct detailed carbon accounting, support circular economy strategies with evidence-based decisions and improve environmental, social and governance and sustainability reporting, TeknTrash says. 

Humans average 30-40 picks per minute when sorting recyclables, but fatigue and decision fatigue can lead to errors, the company says, adding that robots can achieve higher purity rates, reducing bale rejection rates and boosting profitability.

ALPHA can work anywhere waste and recycling are handled, TeknTrash says, from conveyor belts in recycling plants to carrying garbage cans to trucks and more. With Sharp Group, ALPHA is being trained to identify material on conveyor belts at recycling plants, selecting items by material (paper, plastic, etc.) and by brand. Unlike traditional solutions that use stationary robotic arms, ALPHA is built for mobility, dexterity and perception, trained to mirror human hands and precision, TeknTrash says.

“Our goal is to build a smarter, more sustainable future where waste isn’t just managed—it’s understood,” TeknTrash CEO Al Costa says. “We plan to deploy the same solution in 1,000 plants all across Europe, all connected to the cloud, in order to build a huge dataset of actions related to recycling, so we can deploy in ALPHA. Through partnerships like this, we’re turning advanced robotics into real-world sustainability impact.”

The humanoid robot runs on lightweight, energy-efficient hardware for improved runtime reliability. Equipped with hyperspectral vision placed at the start of the conveyor belt, TeknTrash says ALPHA tracks material earlier and more accurately than solutions using RBGD cameras. ALPHA’s grippers are trained using VR to mirror the dexterity of the human hand, enabling faster sorting and increased recycling rates. The humanoid system moves autonomously along rails, coordinates with multiple units, and adapts dynamically to operational conditions, its developer says.

“We’re thrilled to be working with TeknTrash on such an innovative and forward-thinking project,” says Chelsea Sharp, director at Sharp Group. “The integration of AI and robotics into waste management has the potential to completely transform the industry. Not only will this technology make recycling faster and safer, but it also opens up incredible possibilities for improving transparency and accountability through detailed waste data. We’re proud to be part of something that could truly reshape how the world thinks about waste.”

Once testing concludes, Sharp Group will serve as the launchpad for ALPHA’s broader rollout across the U.K. and Europe.