Climate robotics summit

The FlexCycle project was pleased to take part in the Climate Robotics Summit 2026, contributing to the session dedicated to “Recycling Management and Robotics”, focused on the role of advanced robotic technologies in supporting more sustainable industrial processes.
The project was represented by Manuel G. Catalano, coordinator of FlexCycle at the Istituto Italiano di Tecnologia, who presented the project vision and discussed how robotics and Artificial Intelligence can enable more efficient, scalable, and sustainable recycling and reuse strategies for soft and flexible materials.
The session brought together experts from different research and industrial fields, covering topics such as robotic recycling, automated disassembly, battery recycling, e-waste management, circular economy approaches, reuse and repurposing strategies, and the environmental sustainability of robotic technologies themselves. Within this broader context, FlexCycle highlighted the challenges related to the manipulation and recycling of deformable materials such as textiles, electrical cables, and fuel cell membranes — materials that remain difficult to process with conventional automation systems.
Participation in the summit provided an important opportunity to exchange ideas with the international robotics and sustainability community, while reinforcing the project's commitment to developing technologies that are not only scientifically advanced, but also transferable to real industrial applications and aligned with the objectives of the circular economy and climate action.