Patrick Moynahan: Echo Technology CEO on the growing market for electronic recycling companies amid AI boom

There's a growing market for electronic recycling companies as the Generative Artificial Intelligence industry booms. 

Nature Computational Science has published a study finding the rise of the technology, means hardware and chip technology is quickly becoming outdated. 

It finds that it could create potentially five million tonnes of e-waste between 2020 and 2030. 

Echo Technology CEO Patrick Moynahan told Mike Hosking there's money to be made, as recycling companies are trying to adapt to keep up with demand. 

He says they're dealing with juggernauts like Nvidia, the most valuable company in the world. 

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Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:00):
Another chapter in the evolving AI story. We've got new
research that suggests E waste could increase a thousand times
in five years. This is a study from Nature Computational
Science blames AI. Hardware becomes increasingly worthless, creating as many
as five million tons of the stuff. Ecotechnology is a
key we E waste recycle firm. It's Bossus, Patrick Moyner
And as with US MONE, good morning, Mike, no worries

(00:23):
at all the numbers they talk of a thousand times
increase AI. Do any of this? Does any of this
sound real or accurate?

Speaker 2 (00:31):
There's a few parts of us, Mike. So general electronic
waste now that's growing at sort of twelve thirteen percent
aggregated compounding growth per year. But to do with generative AI,
potentially that has the opportunity to grow by a thousand times.

Speaker 1 (00:49):
And what are we if they're right, what are we
going to do about that?

Speaker 2 (00:55):
Well, businesses like ours, like Echo geared up to be
able to receive, process and recycle or find the partners
to recycle and recover this kind of material. But it is,
it is growing at an absolute greater not would.

Speaker 1 (01:13):
You at the stage describe the industry as being able
to deal with what you deal with, and therefore you'll
be able to scale up or not.

Speaker 2 (01:22):
Internationally. There's a number of businesses that have fit their
model to kind of meet the demand of this kind
of material. But you're dealing with these absolute juggernauts of
businesses like Nevada. They just as of yesterday became the
most valuable business in the world. So it's people can

(01:45):
deal with it, but it's it is a little bit
of a hand in glove situation, and so kind of
continue to fight the battle and figure out how to
process this kind of material, what.

Speaker 1 (01:55):
Sort of model these commercial models? In other words, you
can make money out of doing this or does it
need to be subsidized?

Speaker 2 (02:03):
This in particular to do with generative artificial and intelligence
and can't even say AI is a higher value material.
So it's graphics processes, CPUs, power supplies and things. So
there is money money from the material, but generally waste,

(02:24):
television's appliances, that sort of thing. It's usually a cost
to the consumer.

Speaker 1 (02:31):
All right. Patrick appreciated Patrick Moyner and Echo technology. See
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