Circu Li-ion receives 8.5 million euros for sustainable battery recycling

Circu Li-ion secures €8.5 million for battery upcycling and a database to improve recycling. The goal is to establish a circular value chain for electric car batteries in Europe.

Circu Li-ion, a European start-up in the field of battery recycling, has successfully closed a €8.5 million seed funding round. The round was led by BonVenture and received support from battery, AI and industry experts as well as the management team.

We are excited to double our development speed and turn this further funding into smarter, data-driven solutions that make battery recycling economically and environmentally viable for all.

Antoine Welter - CEO & Co-Founder, Circu Li-ion

The funding consists of €4.5 million in equity and €4 million in funding from the European Innovation Council Accelerator (EICA). Circu Li-ion plans to use these funds to further develop its AI-driven battery upcycling solution. In addition, a battery recycling database will be developed to improve material management and recycling practices.

We continue to develop our products with the agility and adaptability that the fast-moving battery market demands.

Xavier Kohll - CTO & Co-Founder, Circu Li-ion

Circu Li-ion's main goal is to establish a circular value chain for electric car batteries in Europe. To achieve this, partnerships with leading OEMs and recyclers will be expanded.

The round targets

1. further development of the upcycling platform: Circu Li-ion will enhance its "Machine-as-a-Service" product with advanced AI algorithms to optimize processes such as battery discharge, disassembly and diagnosis. This is expected to reduce manual labor and minimize environmental impact.

2. expanding its proprietary battery database: the company will build the world's largest battery recycling database. Real-time data collection and analysis algorithms will be used to improve data-driven decisions in battery production.

3. strengthening collaboration with OEMs and recyclers: Circu Li-ion will use funding to strengthen collaboration with electric vehicle OEMs and recyclers to promote sustainable practices throughout the battery lifecycle.

4. unlocking new opportunities in the battery recycling value chain: using AI, Circu Li-ion will improve battery sorting and introduce an intelligent sorting system. At the same time, research will focus on innovative methods for separating and processing battery components.

In addition to these developments, Circu Li-ion plans to expand its main production facility near Karlsruhe to 2000 m² and expand its Berlin branch.

Circu Li-ion is putting a stop to the current value destruction in the form of a technically sophisticated and particularly innovative solution, thus unlocking previously inaccessible potential down to the level of individual battery cells.

Nikolaj Klebert - Investment Manager, BonVenture:

The latest investment in Circu Li-ion, in which BonVenture plays a key role, continues the investment strategy the company pursued last month in Resourcify. With €14 million in Series A funding, BonVenture demonstrates its commitment to advancing sustainability solutions in resource management and battery recycling. This underscores their continued commitment to investing in innovative and sustainable technologies. It remains exciting to see if undiscovered synergies between Resourcify and Circu Li-ion will develop in the future.