The most important piece of equipment in a modern recycling facility is not the million-dollar optical sorter or the towering baler. It is the human hand, picking through a river of fast-moving, sharp-edged waste. EverestLabs.AI, a Fremont-based startup, is betting that a robotic arm, guided by an AI trained on millions of images of trash, can do it better, cheaper, and for longer than any person ever could.
Founded in 2018, EverestLabs sells a combination of hardware and software it calls RecycleOS. The system uses cameras mounted above conveyor belts to identify specific materials and directs robotic arms to pluck them from the waste stream. The company claims its arms can run at up to 80 picks per minute [CNBC, Aug 2023].
The unit economics of a pick
The core of EverestLabs' bet is not just the robot, but the data platform that justifies its price tag. Every pick is logged, every misidentified item becomes a training example, and every shift generates a report on material composition, throughput, and contamination rates. The company asserts its solution can reduce a facility's labor costs by 30-50% and increase material recovery by two to three times, leading to a payback period of as little as four months [EverestLabs, retrieved 2025].
Founders and Team
| Role | Name | Notable Background |
|---|---|---|
| Founder & CEO | Sami Selcuk | Entrepreneur and technologist with prior Silicon Valley experience [EverestLabs, retrieved 2025]. |
| VP of Engineering | Ernie Dunlevich | Background in robotics and industrial automation [EverestLabs, retrieved 2025]. |
| VP of Product | Vikram Jonnalagadda | Prior roles in enterprise software and industrial tech product management [EverestLabs, retrieved 2025]. |
| VP of Sales | Kevin Dunaway | Commercial leadership in industrial tech and waste/recycling markets [EverestLabs, retrieved 2025]. |
| Senior Vice President | Steve Costello | Over 30 years in sales, technology, and executive leadership [Waste Today, retrieved 2026]. |
Traction with a global waste giant
The most significant validation to date is the company's partnership with Veolia, one of the world's largest environmental services companies. Veolia has deployed EverestLabs' robotics in North America and, notably, in the UK, marking the startup's first international installation [PRNewswire, May 2024].
Financially, EverestLabs has built a solid war chest. According to CB Insights, total funding stands at $28.37 million [CB Insights, retrieved 2026]. Revenue was reported at $1 million in 2026 [RocketReach, retrieved 2026].
Where the wheels could come off
The space for robotic sorting is no longer a greenfield. The company faces several credible challengers, including AMP Robotics, Glacier, ZenRobotics, Ishitva Robotic Systems, and Greyparrot.
The next twelve months
The immediate future for EverestLabs will be measured in deployments, not research papers. The next twelve months should see whether the Veolia deal is a one-off or the start of a pattern. Key milestones to watch will be announcements from other top-ten waste management firms, especially in North America.