Overview
Xbat.ai is a joint venture between Sortbat, a battery sorting specialist, and VITO, a Belgian research leader in sustainability. The company uses AI and X-ray technology to enable semi-automatic sorting of batteries, enhancing safety and reducing costs. The Xbat.ai sorting machine operates at Sortbat in Tienen, Belgium.
In the news
- SORTBAT MACHINE Small battery sorting: by hand, automated or not at all? Portable batteries rarely arrive one type at a time. Different sizes, chemistries and brands end up in the same collection box, and someone has to sort them. We’re curious how others in the battery chain handle this. How does your organisation sort small batteries today? Other answer? Tell us in the comments. 𝐄𝐯𝐞𝐫𝐲 𝐛𝐚𝐭𝐭𝐞𝐫𝐲. 𝐒𝐨𝐫𝐭𝐞𝐝. #BatterySorting #SortingLine #BatteryRecycling #XbatAI #Sortbat
- TOGETHER Meet Ali, our new Data & AI Solutions Architect. Ali joins Xbat.ai to help our sorting machine grow on the AI side. We asked him a few questions. ❓ What drew you to Xbat.ai, and why battery sorting? “Every battery that is recycled properly gives valuable materials a second life and keeps hazardous ones out of the environment. But good recycling starts with good sorting, and that gets harder as the variety of batteries keeps growing. Xbat.ai tackles that problem with AI, on real machines in real sorting plants. That
- Congratulations to Relu on winning the VLAIO AWARD 2026 for Economic impact! Thank you VLAIO - Flanders Innovation & Entrepreneurship for a great afternoon.
- SORTING BELGIUM A proud afternoon at the VLAIO AWARDS 2026 for our AI battery sorting line. On Friday, the VLAIO AWARD for Economic impact went to Relu. Congratulations, well deserved! With so many strong entries this year, reaching the final three, alongside Relu and RoboJob, is a recognition we’re proud of. Thank you VLAIO - Flanders Innovation & Entrepreneurship for selecting Sortbat as a finalist, and for an inspiring afternoon. It confirms the direction we’ve taken with our AI-driven sorting line in Tienen. Thank you to
- SORTBAT MACHINE AI battery sorting, nominated for a VLAIO AWARD 2026. This afternoon, VLAIO - Flanders Innovation & Entrepreneurship presents the VLAIO AWARDS 2026. The sorting technology behind Xbat.ai is at the heart of SORTBAT’s nomination in the Economic impact category, alongside RoboJob and Relu. What makes the difference is the AI: every battery that passes the line adds to what the model knows, so recognition keeps improving over time. Good luck to Sortbat and to all nominees this afternoon! 𝐄𝐯𝐞𝐫𝐲 𝐛𝐚𝐭𝐭𝐞𝐫𝐲.
- Sharing our knowledge and experience is another way we contribute to a circular future.
- Meet our additional guest speaker at our Chemistry for Batteries Value Chain Workshop on 22 October 2026 at Cefic in Brussels. 🎤 Alexis Thoelen is General Manager of Xbat.ai and Business Unit Manager Portable Batteries at Sortbat, the Belgian battery sorting specialist and Bebat subsidiary. A chemist by training (UCLouvain) and alumnus of London Business School's Senior Executive Programme, he has spent his career in senior management roles at international companies including Solvay, Hamon and Powall, a TU Delft spin-off,
- SORTBAT MACHINE Three things that surprised people when they spoke with Alexis Thoelen at ICBR Berlin (ICM AG): 1️⃣ Flexible by design The sorting system scales with your business. As your volumes grow, the system can be expanded at an incremental cost. No entirely new installation needed. 2️⃣ Continuous flow The system sorts continuously. No batching. No stop-start process. Just a constant flow. 3️⃣ Two streams, one machine Household batteries and battery packs can be sorted at the same time. Not one after the other. Built on
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