Matoha

Matoha is a London-based materials technology company that manufactures AI-powered handheld and desktop devices capable of identifying the composition of any material — plastic, textile, metal, or fibre blend — within a fraction of a second. Founded in 2018, the company was created to address one of the most fundamental bottlenecks in the circular economy: the inability to correctly identify and sort materials at the point of collection, which causes a large proportion of theoretically recyclable waste to end up in landfill or incineration.

The company's devices use near-infrared (NIR) spectroscopy combined with proprietary AI algorithms to classify materials with high accuracy and speed, without the need for laboratory analysis or specialist training. Products range from handheld scanners for on-site or field use to industrial desktop scanners for high-throughput waste sorting facilities. Matoha has sold over 250 devices across 45 countries, including to some of the largest textile sorters and recyclers in the world.

The platform extends beyond hardware: Matoha's data software provides customers with rich data on the materials flowing through their supply chains, supporting compliance with Extended Producer Responsibility legislation and enabling traceability for recyclers and brands. Investors include Archipelago Ventures, the Circular Plastics Accelerator, the British Design Fund, Fashion for Good, and Conduit Connect.

In 2025, Matoha completed the first phase of a £1.5 million seed round to refine its handheld device capabilities and develop AI-driven robotic sorting systems — a step towards its goal of every end-of-life garment passing through a Matoha system.