CMU AI, Robotics Team Up With Apple To Improve Device Recycling

Researchers at Carnegie Mellon University are working with Apple to develop new ways to disassemble old technology. This work builds on Apple's existing recycling innovations, including its recycling robots Daisy and Dave. As Apple sought to support research initiatives that reimagine disassembly of devices and recovery of materials, the company worked with CMU's Biorobotics Lab in the Robotics Institute. Matt Travers and Howie Choset, co-directors of the lab, and their team are designing machine learning models that will enable robots to teach themselves how to disassemble a device they have never seen before. "We're building robots, and we're building AI so the machine can see any piece of electronics and figure out how to take it apart," Travers said.