Plastics production has doubled in the last two decades, clogging up our oceans and showing up in our organs. The massive growth in plastics production is also increasing CO2 output and driving up fossil fuel demand. Meanwhile, only 8% of plastic actually gets recycled, challenging our trust in the waste management system. But a new set of tools driven by AI, robotics, and material science are helping recycle plastics, steel, textiles, and just about everything else. And a new generation of entrepreneurs, scientists, and engineers are devoting themselves to launching those tools. In this episode, we examine technology advances that are helping recyclers convert hard-to-recycle waste into a valuable feedstock – and what it means for building a circular economy with a singular goal of radically reducing global waste. Guests: Kate Brandt, chief sustainability officer at Google Astro Teller, captain of moonshots, at X, the moonshot factory Rey Banatao, project lead at X, the moonshot factory Julia Mangin, head of sustainability, Recology Emma Lingle, project manager at X, the moonshot factory Watch our complementary documentary about how scientists and entrepreneurs at X, Alphabet’s moonshot factory, are inventing tools driven by AI, robotics, and material science to recycle plastics, steel, textiles, and just about everything else. It's all part of their vision to build a circular economy that will radically reduce global waste.
