All posts tagged: circular

Circular economy actions could cut EU’s climate change impact by 22%

Circular economy actions could cut EU’s climate change impact by 22%

Published by skeptic

Three new assessments on circularity published by the European Environment Agency (EEA) have found significant benefits for both the economy and environment, if investment is accelerated to ensure policy targets are met. The assessments analysed and modelled 17 circular economy actions across sectors such as housing, mining, food, and mobility, and saw not only positive environmental impact, but also economic benefits. The briefing ‘The environmental and climate benefits of circular economy‘ saw that circular economy efforts had the potential to: reduce the EU’s impact on climate change by 22% reduce its impact on biodiversity loss by 19% and reduce air pollution (fine particulate matter) by 25%. Strategic investment could secure better access to materials and enable the creation of new businesses, reducing the EU’s reliance on raw materials from around the world. For example, the EU reliance on aluminium, nickel, and platinum group metals ores extracted in other world regions would decline by around 20%, and by 12% for copper. Better circularity means better materials In Europe, each person consumes 14.4 tonnes of materials each year …

EEA highlights barriers slowing European circular economy growth

EEA highlights barriers slowing European circular economy growth

Published by skeptic

Europe’s push towards a more sustainable economic model is entering a decisive phase. Two new assessments from the European Environment Agency (EEA) argue that achieving a functioning European circular economy will depend less on ambition alone and more on how well policies work for people, from entrepreneurs to workers and consumers. Leena Ylä-Mononen, EEA Executive Director, explained: “People must be at the heart of Europe’s circular economy ambitions. “This move to circularity will add to our prosperity, and emerging circular businesses need a fair playing field, while workers must benefit from decent jobs, skills development and opportunities. “A circular economy is as much about social fairness as it is about economic policy, and  a tool to protect our environment and climate.” A system that works for people The reports underline a central issue: circularity cannot scale unless it is practical, accessible and fair. Businesses that embed circular principles, such as reducing waste, extending product lifecycles, or rethinking ownership models, often struggle to grow beyond niche markets. This creates a disconnect between policy goals and on-the-ground …

Refurbishment automation at the heart of circular electronics

Refurbishment automation at the heart of circular electronics

Published by skeptic

Challenges, opportunities, and Wisematic’s role in the future of smart device refurbishment. The rapid expansion of the global secondary market for consumer electronics has established refurbishment as a central component of the circular economy. In Europe, where sustainability, resource efficiency, and carbon reduction are high political priorities, the refurbishment of smartphones and other smart devices is increasingly recognised as a strategic industry with high importance and long-term growth possibilities. This field sits at the intersection of several technological and operational disciplines: flexible robotics, machine vision, artificial intelligence (AI), reverse logistics, and materials circularity. Refurbishment automation is not merely an extension of traditional manufacturing automation. It represents a distinct discipline with high focus on flexibility and adaptation—it must handle high variation, uncertain conditions, device-specific requirements, and rapidly evolving consumer technologies. Unlike industrial production lines optimised for predictable, uniform inputs, refurbishment facilities encounter a near infinite mix of device types, age profiles, physical conditions, and software states. This positions refurbishment automation among the most technically demanding automation domains. At the same time, the societal and environmental stakes …

See Frank Lloyd Wright’s Circular Sun House on the Market for .8 M.

See Frank Lloyd Wright’s Circular Sun House on the Market for $8.8 M.

Published by José Betancourt

Frank Lloyd Wright’s so-called Circular Sun House—the last design completed by the famed architect before his death in 1959—is up for sale for $8.8 million. The look is sleek and futuristic, with consummate rhythm and flow. The setting is a hilltop in Phoenix that offers breathtaking views of Palm Canyon and the sun-streaked city below. The listing from Realty ONE Group notes that the house was designed shortly before the opening of Wright’s iconic Guggenheim Museum building in New York in 1959. It was renovated in 1995, and four new air-conditioning units were installed in 2019 (not a bad move in the sweltering conditions of Arizona). Also, per the listing: “Furniture included!” The Circular Sun House has been available for short-term visits, with an Airbnb listing currently offering two-night stays (the minimum time on offer) for $5,695. Reviews have been favorable. “Unforgettable. Spectacular. Ethereal. Enlightening. Inspiring,” reads one. Another: “What a wonderful stay in a truly unique place. Both daytime and evening had equally incredible views, and the house has a feel to it like …

Materia AI’s platform to power EV battery circular economy

Materia AI’s platform to power EV battery circular economy

Published by skeptic

Materia AI has been awarded a UK Government grant to accelerate the development of ReGenTrace AI, a platform positioned as the UK’s first AI-driven digital system built specifically to support a circular EV battery ecosystem. The funding marks a milestone for the startup as it works to modernise how electric vehicle batteries are recovered, processed and reintegrated into the supply chain at the end-of-life. Awarded through Innovate UK, the grant forms part of the government’s ‘Catalyst for Early-Stage Startups’ programme, which backs companies working in frontier technologies including artificial intelligence, engineering biology, quantum and advanced connectivity. Building digital infrastructure for a circular battery future Under the programme, Materia AI will develop a Minimum Viable Product (MVP) of ReGenTrace AI, laying the digital foundations for a scalable EV battery circular economy. The platform is designed to address a growing challenge facing the UK: the rapidly increasing volume of end-of-life EV batteries expected over the next decade. As EV adoption accelerates and demand for critical minerals intensifies, Materia AI argues that a data-driven, circular supply chain will …

BLUETTI tackles charging bottlenecks and circular tech with new charger 2 & elite series at CES 2026

BLUETTI tackles charging bottlenecks and circular tech with new charger 2 & elite series at CES 2026

Published by skeptic

CES often highlights the diverging strategies within the portable power sector, and 2026 is no exception. Amid all the different priorities, BLUETTI seems to have gotten the memo. Instead of just stacking more LFP cells into a box, they’ve unveiled the CES 2026 lineup that tackles the two most annoying parts of the off-grid life: waiting hours for a 12V car charge and the guilt of buying more plastic-heavy gear. The “12V Bottleneck” is Finally Dead: Charger 2 If you’ve ever tried to top off a 1Wh or 2kWh portable power station from a standard car cigarette lighter, you know it’s a multi-day exercise in frustration. BLUETTI’s new Charger 2 looks like the fix we’ve been waiting for. Left: BLUETTI Charger 2 simultaneously uses the vehicle’s alternator and solar panels to achieve up to 13x faster on-the-go charging; Right: a comparison of Charger 2 and the previous Charger 1 specifications. Rather than a simple adapter, this is a 1,200W Smart Energy Hub. It pulls from your alternator and solar panels simultaneously, pushing speeds up to …

The missing link in circular economy

The missing link in circular economy

Published by skeptic

Ellie Gabel details how extending product lifecycles reduces waste, emissions and costs while helping businesses and consumers transition to a circular economy. Innovators in every industry know that replacing parts and machinery is one of the most disruptive and financially exhausting endeavours. Consumers feel this too, as product quality deteriorates and budgets are strained by the need to repurchase life’s essentials. Instead, organisations could use and manufacture items with longer lifecycles, leading to one of the greatest sustainability wins for the planet – a circular economy. Reducing resource consumption The amount of effort required to create one product or machine is immense, ranging from raw material extraction to transportation to a facility for processing at higher temperatures. One of the sectors most notably impacted by lifecycle extension strategies is the manufacturing industry. Facilities stock warehouses full of replacement parts for large equipment, which sometimes rely on scarce heavy metals or other resources requiring monumental environmental destruction. If parts lasted longer by default, there would be less demand for their creation, and fewer replacements would be …

MAGA’s circular firing squad intensifies

MAGA’s circular firing squad intensifies

Published by Sam Flores

The MAGA movement has captured nearly every lever of power that matters in American life. Conservatives control the Supreme Court and dominate most red-state legislatures, while Donald Trump commands a compliant Republican Congress and maintains a suffocating grip on the GOP’s internal machinery. And yet, as 2025 winds down, the MAGA base is restless. Loyalists are complaining, right-wing influencers are sniping at Cabinet officials and now top Trump appointees are snapping back in public, often with visible contempt for the very people who put them there. MAGA promised domination. While Trump’s second term has dismantled diversity, equity and inclusion programs with surgical precision and rolled out never-ending culture wars, the president is facing a rebellion of unmet expectations. A coalition that once prided itself on lockstep loyalty is fracturing into factions: the true believers who demand mass arrests and deportations yesterday, the GOP careerists urging patience and “process,” and the right-wing influencers who gin up rage for profit. But with a president far more interested in monetizing power and trimming his abode in gold, there …

CoreWeave CEO defends AI circular deals as ‘working together’

CoreWeave CEO defends AI circular deals as ‘working together’

Published by skeptic

It’s been quite the year for CoreWeave. In March, the AI cloud infrastructure provider went public in one of the biggest and most anticipated IPOs of the year that didn’t live up to its hype. Another setback took place in October, when a planned acquisition of the cloud provider’s business partner, Core Scientific, faltered due to skepticism from the acquisition target’s shareholders.  In the meantime, the firm has acquired a number of different companies, its stock has gone up and down, and it’s been both criticized and lauded for its role in the booming AI data center market.  In an interview at the Fortune Brainstorm AI summit in San Francisco on Tuesday, CoreWeave’s co-founder and CEO, Michael Intrator, defended his company’s performance from critics, noting that it was in the midst of creating a “new business model” for how cloud computing can be built and run. Their collection of Nvidia GPUs is so valuable, they borrow against it to help finance their business. The executive seemed to imply: If you’re charting a new path, you’re …