Japan's trading houses turn electronic trash into rare earth treasure
Major Japanese trading houses are aiming to turn electronic trash into rare earth treasure. They're using AI and robotics to extract the valuable metals and more from e-waste.Itochu has partnered with a US company that specializes in recycling used IT equipment.
The firm combines artificial intelligence with robotic arms to sort shredded material. This enables it to automatically and accurately recover key materials.
The joint venture will collect end-of-life PCs and smartphones from firms and local governments in Japan to extract metals and plastics.
Nishimura Koichiro, CEO of an Itochu subsidiary, said: "Japan's recovery rate of e-waste stands at around only 20 percent. We want to make collection more efficient than it has been."
Meanwhile, trading house Toyota Tsusho has acquired a major US-based automobile recycling company with an extensive network in North America.
Toyota Tsusho plans to recycle steel and aluminum from scrap metal and batteries from electric vehicles.
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