Recupere Metals

Cover Block

Name	Recupere Metals
Tagline	No-smelt AI-mechanical recycling of copper scrap into electrical winding wires.
Headquarters	Paris, France
Founded	2025
Stage	Seed
Business Model	B2B
Industry	Cleantech / Climatetech
Geography	Western Europe
Growth Profile	Venture Scale
Founding Team	Co-Founders (2)
Funding Label	Seed (total disclosed ~$5,400,000)

Links

• Website: https://www.recupere-metals.com
• LinkedIn: https://fr.linkedin.com/in/katie-marsh-b5717169

What an Investor Needs First

Recupere Metals aims to establish a sovereign European supply of high-grade copper wire for electrification by recycling scrap through a patented mechanical and AI process, eliminating the need for smelting [Recupere Metals]. Founded in 2025 by Katie Marsh and Julien Vaissette, the Paris-based cleantech venture addresses a projected 6.5 million metric ton copper supply gap by 2035 while targeting the multi-billion dollar electrical winding wire market [Marble Studio]. The company's core differentiation rests on a closed-loop AI system that refines scrap into high-conductivity wires, a process underpinned by CTO Vaissette's PhD-level expertise in metal wire microstructure [Recupere Metals]. A €5 million seed round closed in early 2026, backed by a syndicate including Endgame Capital and SistaFund, funds the build-out of its first commercial plant [French Tech Journal, February 2026]. Over the next 12 to 18 months, investor focus will center on the technical validation of its pilot output, the securing of binding offtake agreements with EV or wind turbine manufacturers, and the translation of its ambitious $60 million plant revenue projection into contracted sales [YouTube, 2025].

Data Accuracy: YELLOW -- Core company claims are sourced directly; market sizing and valuation figures rely on single, unverified sources.

Taxonomy Snapshot

Axis	Value
Stage	Seed
Business Model	B2B
Industry / Vertical	Cleantech / Climatetech
Geography	Western Europe
Growth Profile	Venture Scale
Founding Team	Co-Founders (2)

Inside the Company

Recupere Metals was founded in 2025 in Paris, France, as a cleantech venture with the stated mission to address the copper supply gap for electrification [PitchBook, 2026]. The company's founding narrative centers on reducing Europe's reliance on imported primary copper and energy-intensive smelting by creating a sovereign supply from recycled scrap [Recupere Metals].

Key milestones trace a rapid path from inception to seed funding. The company participated in the Norrsken Evolve accelerator program, closing an undisclosed pre-seed round in 2025 [YouTube, 2025]. By February 2026, it had secured a €5 million (approximately $5.4 million) seed round from a syndicate of European climate and impact funds [French Tech Journal, February 2026]. The company's public communications highlight securing key industrial partnerships to ensure feedstock for its first commercial plant [YouTube, 2025].

Data Accuracy: YELLOW -- Founding year and location confirmed by PitchBook and Crunchbase; funding round details corroborated by a trade publication; accelerator participation and partnership claims are single-source.

Under the Hood

The core proposition is a mechanical recycling process that bypasses smelting entirely, a significant departure from traditional copper refining. According to the company, this patented process, enhanced by a closed-loop AI system, can convert 100% secondary copper scrap directly into high-conductivity electrical winding wire [Recupere Metals]. The stated goal is to produce a material that meets the exacting standards for use in electric vehicle motors, wind turbines, and other electrical components, while drastically reducing greenhouse gas emissions and reliance on imported primary copper [Recupere Metals] [Marble Studio].

Technical differentiation hinges on microstructural control, an area where CTO Julien Vaissette's PhD-level expertise is positioned as a key asset [Recupere Metals]. The AI component is described as optimizing the mechanical process in real-time. Job postings for a Machine Learning Engineer and a Technical Engineer for data simulations indicate an active build-out of this capability [Recupere Metals]. A 2025 conference presentation cited secured industrial partnerships to ensure feedstock for a first commercial plant [YouTube, 2025].

Data Accuracy: YELLOW -- Core product claims are from the company's website; technical team expertise is partially corroborated by LinkedIn and ResearchGate. The AI component and partnership details lack independent verification.

Market Research

The market for Recupere Metals is defined by a structural deficit in a commodity essential to the energy transition, creating a rare window for new supply chains built on scrap rather than new mines.

The core opportunity is the electrical winding wire segment, which the company cites as a $30 billion market [Marble Studio]. A separate source, a 2025 conference presentation, references a $20 billion segment for the specific wires Recupere targets [YouTube, 2025]. This product is a critical input for electric vehicle motors, wind turbine generators, and industrial electrical components. The broader context is a projected 6.5 million metric ton copper supply gap by 2035, driven by accelerating electrification against a backdrop of long mine development cycles and geopolitical concentration of refining capacity [Marble Studio].

Demand tailwinds are multi-faceted and well-documented. The European Union's push for strategic autonomy, embodied in the Critical Raw Materials Act, explicitly aims to secure domestic supply chains for materials like copper. Simultaneously, corporate net-zero commitments are increasing pressure on manufacturers to reduce Scope 3 emissions from their supply chains, where primary metal production is a significant contributor. Recupere's process, which claims to eliminate smelting, directly addresses both the sovereignty and decarbonization mandates.

Market Sizing Claim	Value
Winding Wire Market	$30bn
Target Wire Segment	$20bn
Copper Supply Gap by 2035	6.5Mt

Data Accuracy: YELLOW -- Market sizing figures are sourced from company-associated materials and a conference video; the structural supply gap is a widely cited industry projection but specific attribution is limited.

Competition and Substitutes

Recupere Metals positions itself not as a direct challenger to established copper producers, but as a new entrant in the recycling-to-wire segment, aiming to bypass the smelting bottleneck entirely.

The landscape for high-conductivity copper wire can be segmented into three groups. First, the incumbent primary producers and integrated recyclers, such as Aurubis and Boliden, which operate large-scale smelters and refineries to process both mined ore and complex scrap. Second, a growing set of challengers focused on advanced recycling technologies, often targeting specific waste streams or leveraging hydrometallurgical processes. Third, adjacent substitutes, including aluminum winding wire producers and companies developing alternative motor designs.

Recupere's claimed defensible edge today rests on its proprietary mechanical process and the specialized materials science expertise of its CTO, Julien Vaissette. The company's website asserts his PhD in metal wire microstructure makes him "one of 5 people in the world to study this topic" [Recupere Metals]. The company's most significant exposure lies in its lack of industrial deployment and the entrenched position of incumbents. Recupere has no cited commercial sales and must build its first plant, a high-capex endeavor, while simultaneously securing reliable scrap feedstock and qualifying its wire with cautious OEMs.

Data Accuracy: YELLOW -- Competitive analysis is inferred from industry structure; no direct competitors were named in available sources.

Opportunity

Recupere Metals aims to capture a meaningful portion of the $30 billion winding wire market by establishing a sovereign, low-carbon copper supply chain for European electrification [Marble Studio].

The headline opportunity is to become the default supplier of high-conductivity, recycled copper wire for European EV and renewable energy manufacturers, displacing imported primary copper and energy-intensive smelting. The company has secured key industrial partnerships to ensure feedstock for its first commercial plant [YouTube, 2025]. The core technological claim, a patented mechanical process enhanced by AI to purify scrap without smelting, is backed by a CTO with a PhD in the precise field of metal wire microstructure [Recupere Metals].

Data Accuracy: YELLOW -- Market sizing and growth scenario catalysts are inferred from company and secondary source claims; the core technological premise and partnerships are directly cited.

Sources

1. [Recupere Metals] Recupere Metals | https://www.recupere-metals.com
2. [Marble Studio] What the company does - Marble Studio | https://marble.studio/companies/recupere-metals
3. [YouTube, 2025] Impact/Week 2025 video | https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=MWXNuj9lsuE
4. [Endgame Capital, 2026] Why We Invested in Recupere Metals | https://www.endgamecapital.vc/post/why-we-invested-in-recupere-metals
5. [PitchBook, 2026] Recupere Metals 2026 Company Profile | https://pitchbook.com/profiles/company/894049-57
6. [French Tech Journal, February 2026] French Tech Funding Wire February 2 | https://www.frenchtechjournal.com/french-tech-funding-wire-february-2-aviwell-eu11m-round-leads-10-deals-for-eu41-8m/
7. [Crunchbase] Recupere Metals | https://www.crunchbase.com/organization/recupere-metals
8. [LinkedIn, 2026] Katie Marsh - Recupere Metals | LinkedIn | https://fr.linkedin.com/in/katie-marsh-b5717169
9. [ResearchGate, 2026] Julien VAISSETTE | National Institute for Applied Sciences Tolouse, Toulouse | Research profile | https://www.researchgate.net/profile/Julien-Vaissette