R3 Robotics

AI-powered robotic systems for automated dismantling of electric vehicle systems at industrial scale.

Website: https://r3robotics.ai/

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Company Name R3 Robotics
Tagline AI-powered robotic systems for automated dismantling of electric vehicle systems at industrial scale.
Headquarters Foetz, Luxembourg
Founded 2021
Stage Series A
Business Model Hardware + Software
Industry Cleantech / Climatetech
Technology AI / Machine Learning
Geography Western Europe
Growth Profile Venture Scale
Founding Team Co-Founders (2)
Funding Label Series A (total disclosed ~$21,400,000)
Total Disclosed €20 million (€14M Series A equity + €6M grants) [EIT Urban Mobility, Feb 2026]

Links

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Executive Summary

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R3 Robotics is automating the most labor-intensive and hazardous step in the electric vehicle recycling value chain, a bottleneck that is growing more acute as Europe's first wave of EVs reaches end-of-life. The company's AI-powered robotic systems are designed to dismantle battery packs, e-drives, and other high-value EV components at industrial scale, aiming to replace manual processes with consistent, data-rich disassembly [EIT Urban Mobility, Feb 2026]. Founded in 2021 by CEO Antoine Welter and CTO Xavier Kohll, the company has evolved from its initial focus on battery upcycling (as Circu Li-ion) to target the broader EV system dismantling market, a strategic pivot reflected in its recent rebrand [TechCrunch, Oct 2023]. Its differentiation lies in a full-stack approach that combines 3D vision, adaptive motion planning, and proprietary tooling, offered through both a service model and integrated hardware deployments [R3ROBOTICS].

The founding team brings a combination of technical and strategic experience, with Kohll holding a doctorate and Welter having a background as a strategy consultant and angel investor; the board has been strengthened by the addition of Peter Mohnen, former CEO of industrial robotics leader KUKA [Crunchbase]. In February 2026, the company secured a combined €20 million in Series A equity and European grants, co-led by HG Ventures and Suma Capital, which will fund the industrialization of its technology [RoboticsTomorrow, Feb 2026]. The business model is dual-pronged, offering 'Disassembly-as-a-Service' from its own facilities and 'Robotics-as-a-Service' for on-site client deployments. Over the next 12-18 months, the key watchpoints are the scaling of its partnership with Fortum Battery Recycling, the conversion of its stated OEM pipeline into contracted revenue, and its ability to validate the claimed 32% cost savings and 75% throughput gains in live industrial settings.

Data Accuracy: GREEN -- Core company facts, funding round, and team details confirmed by multiple independent sources including EIT Urban Mobility, RoboticsTomorrow, and Crunchbase.

Taxonomy Snapshot

Axis Classification
Stage Series A
Business Model Hardware + Software
Industry / Vertical Cleantech / Climatetech
Technology Type AI / Machine Learning
Geography Western Europe
Growth Profile Venture Scale
Founding Team Co-Founders (2)
Funding Series A (total disclosed ~$21,400,000)

Company Overview

PUBLIC

R3 Robotics began as Circu Li-ion, a venture founded in 2021 by CEO Antoine Welter and CTO Xavier Kohll, two entrepreneurs from Luxembourg [Preqin]. The company’s initial focus, as reported in late 2023, was on developing a smart machine for upcycling lithium-ion batteries [TechCrunch, Oct 2023]. A strategic rebrand to R3 Robotics in 2025 signaled a pivot from a battery-specific upcycling focus to a broader platform for automated dismantling of entire electric vehicle systems, including battery packs, e-drives, and power electronics [EIT Urban Mobility, Feb 2026].

The company is headquartered in Foetz, Luxembourg, and operates within the European Union’s regulatory and grant ecosystem. A key early milestone was its inclusion in the portfolios of European public-private investors like EIT Urban Mobility and the European Innovation Council Fund, which provided initial equity support [EIT Urban Mobility, Feb 2026]. The most significant public milestone to date is a combined €20 million financing round closed in February 2026, comprising €14 million in Series A equity co-led by HG Ventures and Suma Capital, and €6 million in non-dilutive European grants [EIT Urban Mobility, Feb 2026], [RoboticsTomorrow, Feb 2026]. This capital is earmarked for industrializing the company’s automated disassembly technology at scale.

Data Accuracy: GREEN - Confirmed by Crunchbase, Preqin, and multiple press releases from EIT Urban Mobility and RoboticsTomorrow.

Product and Technology

MIXED

The company's core offering is an industrial robotic system designed to automate a specific, labor-intensive bottleneck: the dismantling of electric vehicle components. R3 Robotics targets battery packs, e-drives, and power electronics, aiming to replace manual processes that are slow, hazardous, and inconsistent [R3ROBOTICS, retrieved 2026]. Its platform integrates several technologies to achieve this, combining 3D computer vision for component identification with adaptive motion planning to guide robotic arms equipped with purpose-built tooling [R3ROBOTICS, retrieved 2026]. The stated goal is to enable component-level disassembly for higher-value material recovery and reuse, as opposed to bulk shredding, while generating data for regulatory traceability [R3ROBOTICS, retrieved 2026].

R3 Robotics goes to market with two primary service models, reflecting flexibility in deployment. The Disassembly-as-a-Service model involves sending end-of-life systems to the company's own centralized facilities for processing [R3ROBOTICS, retrieved 2026]. Conversely, the Robotics-as-a-Service model entails deploying fully integrated disassembly lines directly at a client's facility [R3ROBOTICS, retrieved 2026]. The company also offers benchmarking services, such as product teardowns and design-for-disassembly reports, which likely serve as an entry point for engagement with automotive OEMs [R3ROBOTICS, retrieved 2026]. Public traction for the core technology includes a partnership with Fortum Battery Recycling to deploy automated dismantling at industrial scale [HG Ventures, retrieved 2026], and the company states it works directly with automotive OEM customers [HG Ventures, retrieved 2026].

The company makes several performance claims for its systems, though these originate from its own website and lack third-party verification. It cites potential benefits of up to 32% lower processing costs and up to 75% higher throughput compared to manual disassembly, alongside a claim of greater than 98% process repeatability to ensure stable output for downstream recycling [R3ROBOTICS, retrieved 2026]. The technology stack can be inferred from open engineering roles, which seek expertise in robotics simulation, perception, and motion planning, suggesting a continued heavy investment in the software and AI layers that control the physical hardware [Open Robotics Discourse, retrieved 2026].

Data Accuracy: YELLOW -- Core product description and service models are confirmed by the company's website and investor materials. Performance claims are company-sourced and unverified. Partnership with Fortum is confirmed by an investor.

Market Research

PUBLIC The market for automated EV disassembly is not yet a mature category with established sizing reports, but its formation is driven by a clear and urgent industrial need. The primary driver is the sheer volume of end-of-life electric vehicle batteries projected to enter the waste stream in Europe over the coming decade. While R3 Robotics does not cite a specific third-party TAM, the company's positioning directly addresses a bottleneck in the broader battery recycling and circular economy value chain, a market with substantial analyst forecasts.

Demand for automated solutions is propelled by several converging forces. The labor-intensive and hazardous nature of manual battery pack disassembly creates a significant cost and safety liability for recyclers and OEMs. Furthermore, Europe's regulatory push toward a circular economy, exemplified by the EU Battery Regulation, mandates higher recycling efficiency rates and material recovery targets, putting pressure on existing manual processes. The economic incentive to recover high-value components like battery modules, e-drives, and power electronics for direct reuse or remanufacturing, rather than shredding them for raw materials, provides a strong commercial tailwind for precision disassembly.

Adjacent and substitute markets frame the opportunity. The broader lithium-ion battery recycling market, which includes both hydrometallurgical recycling of shredded materials and direct component reuse, provides the most direct analog. According to a report cited by investor HG Ventures, the global market for lithium-ion battery recycling was valued at approximately $4.6 billion in 2022 and is projected to grow to $22.8 billion by 2030, representing a compound annual growth rate of 22.1% [HG Ventures]. The industrial robotics market, particularly for material handling and assembly, serves as both a technological foundation and a cost benchmark for R3's systems.

Regulatory and macro forces are decisively favorable. The EU Battery Regulation establishes stringent requirements for collection, recycling efficiency, and recovered material content, effectively creating a compliance-driven market for advanced disassembly capabilities. Geopolitical tensions and supply chain vulnerabilities around critical battery materials like lithium, cobalt, and nickel further incentivize localized, efficient recovery loops within Europe.

Global Li-ion Battery Recycling Market 2022 | 4.6 | $B
Global Li-ion Battery Recycling Market 2030 | 22.8 | $B

The projected growth of the underlying battery recycling market, from $4.6 billion to $22.8 billion by 2030, underscores the scale of the industrial activity R3 Robotics aims to serve, though its specific SAM within that broader flow remains unquantified in public sources.

Data Accuracy: YELLOW -- Market sizing is drawn from a single investor-cited report; regulatory drivers are well-established but not quantified.

Competitive Landscape

MIXED R3 Robotics enters a market defined by a critical operational bottleneck, positioning its automated disassembly as a specialized solution between large-scale shredding operations and manual, labor-intensive workshops.

Company Positioning Stage / Funding Notable Differentiator Source
R3 Robotics AI-powered robotic systems for automated dismantling of EV battery packs, e-drives, and power electronics. Series A; €20M (€14M equity + €6M grants) in Feb 2026. Focus on component-level, non-destructive disassembly enabling reuse and high-purity material streams, offered via Robotics-as-a-Service. [EIT Urban Mobility, Feb 2026], [PRESS RELEASE, Feb 2026]
Redwood Materials Large-scale, closed-loop battery materials recycling and refining, building a North American supply chain. Late-stage venture; over $2B raised. Vertically integrated model from collection to refined cathode material, backed by major OEM partnerships and offtake agreements. [Crunchbase]
Li-Cycle Global lithium-ion battery resource recovery company using a proprietary 'Spoke & Hub' hydrometallurgical process. Public (NYSE: LICY); >$1B in equity and project financing. Focus on a wet-chemistry process designed to recover a high percentage of battery materials without smelting. [Crunchbase]

The competitive map segments into three distinct approaches. At the macro-scale recycling end, companies like Redwood Materials and Li-Cycle focus on the back-end of the value chain, processing black mass into battery-grade materials. Their scale and capital intensity create a high barrier to entry for pure recycling. The direct competitive set for R3 is smaller, consisting of other robotics firms and specialized engineering shops tackling the disassembly bottleneck, though few are as publicly prominent. A broader set of substitutes includes manual disassembly operations, which R3 aims to displace on cost and safety, and traditional shredding, which sacrifices component reuse for throughput.

R3's current edge is its early-mover focus on industrial automation for a specific, painful process step. Its defensibility appears to rest on the integration of proprietary software (vision, AI planning) with purpose-built hardware, a combination that requires deep domain expertise and iteration time. The €6 million in non-dilutive European grants [EIT Urban Mobility, Feb 2026] signals alignment with regional circular economy mandates, providing a regulatory and capital advantage within Europe. However, this edge is perishable if larger industrial robotics incumbents or well-funded recyclers decide to build or acquire similar capabilities, leveraging their existing sales channels and customer relationships.

The company's exposure is twofold. First, it is dependent on the pace of EV adoption and the subsequent flow of end-of-life batteries, a cycle that is still maturing. Second, its business model requires deep integration into client operations, whether on-site or at its own facilities, making sales cycles long and deployment complex. A competitor like Redwood, with its established logistics network and OEM contracts, could theoretically backward-integrate into automated disassembly, applying its significant capital to solve the bottleneck in-house.

The most plausible 18-month scenario is one of segmentation rather than winner-take-all. R3 could emerge as the winner if European regulations tighten around battery passports and reuse mandates, making its traceability and non-destructive output highly valuable to OEMs seeking compliance. In that case, a traditional shredder focused solely on bulk recovery could be the loser, as its output becomes less aligned with regulatory and reuse economics. Conversely, if the economics of battery material recovery continue to favor sheer volume and chemical processing scale, the capital-intensive recyclers will consolidate market power, potentially marginalizing specialized disassembly players.

Data Accuracy: YELLOW -- Competitor profiles are based on public positioning; detailed comparative performance metrics are not available.

Opportunity

PUBLIC

If R3 Robotics can industrialize its automated disassembly technology, it could capture a foundational role in the European circular economy for electric vehicles, a market where manual labor and safety concerns are primary bottlenecks to scaling.

The headline opportunity is for R3 Robotics to become the default infrastructure provider for high-value component recovery from end-of-life EVs. The company is not merely selling robots, but a platform that standardizes a chaotic, hazardous, and capacity-constrained process. The cited evidence that makes this outcome reachable, rather than purely aspirational, includes the company's confirmed partnership with Fortum Battery Recycling to deploy the technology at industrial scale [HG Ventures, retrieved 2026] and its stated work with automotive OEMs [HG Ventures, retrieved 2026]. These are early signals of adoption by major players in the recycling and automotive value chains, validating the core need. Furthermore, the recent €20 million capital infusion, combining venture equity with European grants, provides the runway to move from pilot systems to full-scale industrial lines [EIT Urban Mobility, Feb 2026].

Multiple, concrete paths exist for the company to achieve massive scale. Each scenario hinges on a specific catalyst already hinted at in its business model or partnerships.

Scenario What happens Catalyst Why it's plausible
The European Recycling Standard R3's technology becomes the mandated or de facto process for EV battery disassembly across EU recycling facilities, driven by tightening regulations on battery passports and recycling efficiency. The full enforcement of the EU Battery Regulation, requiring detailed material recovery reports and higher recycling quotas. The company's platform is designed to provide data for regulatory traceability [R3ROBOTICS, retrieved 2026], and its EU-based investors and grant support align with regional policy goals.
OEM Integration Automotive manufacturers integrate R3's "Robotics-as-a-Service" lines directly into their own end-of-life and remanufacturing facilities, creating a closed-loop system. A major European OEM signs a multi-line, multi-year contract for in-house disassembly capacity. The company already claims to work directly with automotive OEM customers [HG Ventures, retrieved 2026], and the unit economics of recovering high-value e-drives and electronics could justify the capex.
Platform Expansion The core AI and robotic tooling developed for EV batteries is adapted to dismantle other complex electrified products, such as industrial energy storage systems or consumer electronics. A strategic partnership with a waste management or electronics recycler to pilot disassembly of a new product category. The underlying technology,3D vision and adaptive motion planning for disassembly,is described as applicable to a range of "electrified systems" [R3ROBOTICS, retrieved 2026], suggesting a broader product roadmap.

The compounding advantage for R3 Robotics is a data and process moat. Each system deployed generates proprietary datasets on the physical construction and failure modes of thousands of EV battery packs and components. This data continuously improves the AI's disassembly algorithms, making the process faster, safer, and able to handle a wider variety of models with less manual intervention. This creates a flywheel: better performance attracts more customers, whose systems generate more data, further widening the efficiency gap versus new entrants or manual methods. While still early, the company's claim of ">98% process repeatability" [R3ROBOTICS, retrieved 2026], if validated at scale, is a direct output of this data-driven approach and a key metric for industrial customers seeking predictable throughput.

Quantifying the size of the win requires looking at comparable players in adjacent spaces. Redwood Materials, a US-based battery materials recycler, has achieved a multi-billion dollar valuation while focusing largely on hydrometallurgical processing after shredding [various reports]. R3's wedge is the automated, pre-processing step that enables higher-value component reuse before shredding. If the "European Recycling Standard" scenario plays out, R3 could capture a toll-like revenue stream on a significant portion of the millions of end-of-life EV battery packs expected in Europe this decade. A credible outcome, given the strategic nature of the infrastructure, could be an acquisition by a major industrial automation or recycling conglomerate at a premium, or independent scale to become a critical, high-margin service platform within the circular economy. This is a scenario-based illustration, not a financial forecast.

Data Accuracy: YELLOW -- The core opportunity thesis is supported by public partnerships and funding announcements. The growth scenarios are logical extrapolations from the company's stated model and market context, but specific catalysts and scale metrics remain forward-looking.

Sources

PUBLIC

  1. [EIT Urban Mobility, Feb 2026] EIT Urban Mobility Portfolio Company R3 Robotics Raises €20 Million | https://www.eit.europa.eu/news-events/news/eit-urban-mobility-portfolio-company-r3-robotics-raises-eu20-million

  2. [R3ROBOTICS, retrieved 2026] R3 Robotics Website | https://r3robotics.ai/

  3. [TechCrunch, Oct 2023] Smart upcycling machine dissects batteries to save them | https://techcrunch.com/2023/10/23/smart-upcycling-machine-dissects-batteries-to-save-them/

  4. [Crunchbase, retrieved 2026] R3 Robotics - Crunchbase Company Profile & Funding | https://www.crunchbase.com/organization/circu-li-ion

  5. [RoboticsTomorrow, Feb 2026] R3 Robotics Secures €20M to Scale Automated Disassembly of Electric Vehicle Systems | https://www.roboticstomorrow.com/content.php?post=26113

  6. [Preqin, retrieved 2026] R3 Robotics Asset Profile | Preqin | https://www.preqin.com/data/profile/asset/r3-robotics/569523

  7. [HG Ventures, retrieved 2026] HG Ventures Investment Profile | https://hgventures.com/portfolio/

  8. [PRESS RELEASE, Feb 2026] R3 Robotics Funding Announcement | https://r3robotics.ai/

  9. [Open Robotics Discourse, retrieved 2026] Senior Robotics Simulation Engineer (Germany/Luxembourg, Hybrid) | https://discourse.openrobotics.org/t/senior-robotics-simulation-engineer-germany-luxembourg-hybrid/54594

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