Recycling plants in Germany catch fire up to 30 times a day. Every ten days, one of these fires escalates into a major blaze. The damage: around one billion euros per year. Warden Robotics from Wolfenbüttel has decided not to accept this as inevitable normality – and is developing autonomous fire protection that intervenes before the first flame even appears.

A student project encounters a pressing problem.

Lucas Dehmel and Lukas Bartenstein began what initially seemed like an academic project during their studies at Ostfalia University of Applied Sciences and Clausthal University of Technology: an autonomous fire-fighting robot that detects fires, alerts emergency services, and begins extinguishing them before the fire spreads. Three semesters, an eight-person team, one idea.

Konstantin von Haugwitz came across the project at the Hannover Messe 2022. As someone who has been active in two volunteer fire departments for over ten years and most recently worked as a robotics team leader at the Fraunhofer Society, he immediately recognized: "This isn't a research project. This is a company." He brought Hans-Jörg Göschl onto the team – an experienced sales professional from the recycling industry. Starting in the fall of 2022, the four of them began the founding process together.

The problem is new – the old solutions are failing.

What few people understand is that recycling fires are not an old problem that has escalated. It is a new problem for which existing solutions simply weren't designed.

The reason is the battery boom. Lithium-ion batteries are now ending up in household waste in massive quantities, and thus at recycling centers. A single damaged cell can trigger a thermal runaway – it releases enormous heat, dries out the surrounding waste, and causes it to outgas. By the time a flame develops, it's already too late. Thermal imaging cameras, smoke detectors, and manual inspections are already in widespread use – and yet fires still occur because these systems are designed for conventional, open-air fires.

Warden Robotics takes an earlier approach. Their drones patrol the entire site around the clock. A proprietary multimodal detection module fuses data from multiple sensor sources simultaneously, and a two-stage AI analyzes it to detect smoldering fires and hotspots long before visible smoke or flames appear. Existing cameras, fire monitors, and alarm systems are integrated into the platform and consolidated in a central cockpit.

"When can you start with us?"

The moment that confirmed the team's success is best described by the team itself: when they first spoke to a recycling operator and didn't have to explain the problem of the fires to him – he simply asked when they could start.

Technologically, the recognition module has reached technology maturity level 5 out of 9. Initial field tests are already underway with a medium-sized and a publicly owned recycling company in Lower Saxony. The Ostfalia University of Applied Sciences' Knowledge and Technology Transfer Center has patented the recognition module, and Prof. Dr. Tobias Dörnbach and Prof. Dr. Reinhard Gerndt are providing academic support to the startup. With the EXIST start-up grant and HTI funding of €300,000, financing is secured until the product reaches market readiness.

The business model is as simple as it is compelling: fire protection as a fully managed Robotics-as-a-Service. Recycling companies pay a monthly subscription fee – no upfront investment, no in-house staff required for operation, and no technical effort. Warden Robotics handles all installation, maintenance, and monitoring. For an industry that has previously factored fires into its calculations as an unavoidable operational risk, this means: for the first time, proactive protection at predictable costs – right from day one.

Endurance tests, first round, autonomous fleet

Warden Robotics is actively seeking pilot partners who want to take the next step with them. Recycling companies that want to transform their facilities into one of the first fully autonomous fire protection sites in Germany are invited to apply. Insurance companies that see fire prevention as a strategic differentiator will find in Warden Robotics a partner that measurably reduces risks – before they occur. And investors with a network in the recycling or insurance sectors will have the opportunity to get an early foothold in a technology that is redefining a multi-billion-dollar market.

Contact and further information:  warden-robotics.com  .

Image credit: Warden Robotics.

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