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Robot maker · registered

R3 Robotics (former Circu Li-ion)

Corporate marketrecyclingCurated record
r3robotics.ai

AI-powered robotic platform for automated disassembly of end-of-life electric vehicle systems; lithium-ion battery packs, e-drives, and power electronics; using computer vision, AI perception, and specialized robotic tooling; enables zero-waste recovery of critical materials (lithium, cobalt, nickel, manganese) and high-value components while eliminating human exposure to high-voltage risks; lighthouse facility in Karlsruhe Germany operates at 1,500-tonne annual battery processing capacity; formerly Circu Li-ion, rebranded to R3 Robotics in February 2026 to reflect expanded scope from battery to full EV system disassembly.

HeadquartersFoetz, LU
Founded2021
Corporate funding$31M
Team11-50
Deployments1
Open roles0
01

Company overview

Identity and operating footprint

Company typeRobot maker
Market segmentCorporate
StageSeries A
FoundersAntoine Welter (CEO & Co-founder), Dr. Xavier Kohll (Co-founder)
Regions servedEurope
Countries deployedDE, LU
Service footprintLighthouse facility Karlsruhe Germany (1,500 t/yr EV battery capacity); R&D and pilot facility Foetz Luxembourg; flagship plant planned at Belval Luxembourg campus (Q4 2026, 50,000 packs/yr); US market entry planned 2026
Last reviewed2026-07-05
MX

Robot models

Specifications remain vendor-claimed

Machinerecycling

AI-Powered EV Disassembly Platform

  • 1,500-tonne annual battery processing capacity at Karlsruhe lighthouse facility

    vendor-stated operational processing capacity at the Karlsruhe Germany facility for end-of-life EV battery packs

    Claim source
  • Up to 32% lower processing costs versus manual disassembly; up to 75% higher throughput; greater than 98% process repeatability

    vendor-stated performance metrics comparing automated to manual EV battery disassembly operations

    Claim source
  • 50,000 EV battery packs per year target capacity at new Belval Luxembourg facility (Q4 2026)

    vendor-stated planned annual processing capacity at the flagship Belval innovation campus facility

    Claim source
DP

Deployment log

Announced and cited only

AnnouncedCustomerSiteCountryCountEvidence
2026-02-05Fortum Battery Recyclingindustrial EV battery recycling facilityDENot disclosedAnnouncement
CA

Funding history

Publicly announced rounds

Investors on recordHG VenturesSuma CapitalOetker CollectionEuropean Innovation Council Fund (EIC Fund)BonVentureFlixFoundersEIT Urban Mobility
TL

Company timeline

Milestones and announcements

2026-02-05Closed €20M combined financing (€14M Series A + €6M European grants); rebranded from Circu Li-ion to R3 Robotics; expanded scope to full EV system disassemblyTech.eu
2025-01-01Joined Project LAMBDA (Eureka-funded) with AICA and Swiss Battery Technology Centre to develop robotic touch-sensing for complex EV battery disassembly using Kuka industrial robotsTech Funding News
2025-01-01Joined ReDriveS lighthouse project (funded by German Federal Ministry for Economic Affairs) with Schaeffler, Volkswagen, and Bosch to extend automated disassembly capabilities to e-drivesTech Funding News
2024-01-01Established partnership with Amazon for EV battery disassembly processingTech Funding News
SC

Source ledger

7 unique public sources

01
Circu Li-ion becomes R3 Robotics and aims to dismantle entire electric vehicleselectrive.com · retrieved 2026-07-05
02
R3 RoboticsR3 Robotics · retrieved 2026-07-05
03
R3 Robotics €20M raise includes €6M European grants (EUR 6,000,000; USD at Feb-2026 EUR/USD ~1.085) announced alongside €14M Series ATech.eu · retrieved 2026-07-05
04
Circu Li-ion (now R3 Robotics) raises €8.5M seed (EUR 8,500,000 total: €4.5M equity led by BonVenture + €4M EIC Accelerator grant; USD at Oct-2023 EUR/USD ~1.055)EU-Startups · retrieved 2026-07-05
05
R3 Robotics secures €20 million to scale automated disassembly of electric vehicle systemsRobotics & Automation News · retrieved 2026-07-05
06
R3 Robotics Secures €20M to Scale Automated Disassembly for Electric Vehicle SystemsHG Ventures · retrieved 2026-07-05
07
R3 Robotics lands €20M to scale robotic recycling for Europe's EV waste waveTech Funding News · retrieved 2026-07-05