Meet Oscar, the Canadian-built, AI-driven recycling system helping governments go green

Standing in the middle of a cafeteria at Global Affairs, Soren Antosz was testing Oscar, a new, high-tech tool popping up in federal government buildings.

Antosz holds up a paper napkin. That’s compostable, flashes the message on Oscar’s screen.

Next is a plastic bottle. Oscar tells him to empty the liquid then drop it into the recycling section.

With a bit of a smile, Antosz holds up his cellphone. “Put it back in your pocket,” Oscar jokes.

As the federal government begins to embrace artificial intelligence, the Oscar Sort recycling station is one of the more unconventional ways the government is using AI.

The Oscar station looks like a standard office recycling system, but it has a scanner that checks the item which someone wants to discard, then nudges the user to deposit their garbage or recyclable in the right bin.

Currently, Oscar stations are located in 10 federal government buildings in the National Capital region. While the stations in two Global Affairs buildings are part of a pilot project that began a year ago, the stations in eight buildings operated by Public Services and Procurement Canada passed the pilot project stage in March 2022 and are now part of its regular recycling system.

Federal officials are trying to reduce the amount of garbage from government buildings that ends up in landfills. In the case of Global Affairs, the goal is to increase the amount of garbage diverted to recycling from 54.6 per cent in 2022/2023 to 75 per cent by 2027, according to its sustainable development strategy.

AI tool built by B.C.-based company

Oscar is the brainchild of B.C-based start-up Intuitive AI, co-founded by Hassan Murad who immigrated to Canada from Pakistan, and Vivek Vyas who came from India.

Growing up in their home countries, both saw first-hand the problem of waste and recyclables shipped from the West polluting land and waterways.

The two, who met while studying robotics at Simon Fraser University, decided to use artificial intelligence to do something about that problem.

“We asked ourselves a simple question, which was: what is the biggest problem that exists at the moment that we care most about solving?” Murad said in an interview with CBC News. “And we saw that a lot of this waste was ending up in landfills or illegally being shipped and ending up in oceans.”

meet oscar, the canadian-built, ai-driven recycling system helping governments go green

Volunteers clear plastic and other garbage littered on the shores of the Arabian Sea on World Environment Day, in Mumbai, India, in 2022. (Rafiq Maqbool/The Associated Pres)

Founded in 2017, hundreds of Intuitive AI’s Oscar Sort systems are now located in 20 countries, said Murad.

While the name Oscar evokes images of Oscar the Grouch for many Canadians, the popular character from Sesame Street who lives in a trash can, Murad said the name actually started as a short form for what Oscar is – an object scanner and recognition tool.

A recycling bin that learns on the go

What separates Oscar from run of the mill recycling stations is artificial intelligence. A user shows the object they are about throw out to the scanner and the Oscar station will tell them where it should go. The more often a station is used, the more it learns which objects should go in which bin.

Oscar stations can be programmed for each client and location, said Murad. For example, in the National Capital region, Quebec and Ontario have different recycling streams, so the stations in federal government buildings in Quebec give different messages than those located in Ontario.

meet oscar, the canadian-built, ai-driven recycling system helping governments go green

Hassan Murad is co-founder of Intuitive AI which developed the Oscar Sort recycling system. (Screen capture)

They can be set up to give users a reward for throwing something into the right bin or a “grouch” if they get it wrong with a red screen and an X. They can even be programmed to reward a user with a QR code that can give them a discount on a product – something the government departments aren’t currently doing.

The stations at Global Affairs include a recycling trivia game where users can answer questions by showing a thumbs up or a thumbs down.

Antosz, deputy director for sustainable government operations at Global Affairs, said the reaction from employees has been positive.

“People find it’s kind of a fun experience,” he said. “Because it’s interactive, people kind of get a kick out of it.”

Antosz said they see more people using the Oscar stations each month. In October alone, there were 15,000 disposals at one station.

Antosz said the stations are also providing the department with data that can identify problems such as people throwing used paper napkins in the paper bin rather than compost.

Antosz said they can see “how many disposals into the recycling centre were correct versus how many were incorrect and where we are seeing contamination in our waste streams. So, we can then use that data to target our messaging.”

Public Services and Procurement Canada is also seeing an increase in the use of the Oscar stations in its buildings, said Jérôme Gagnon, who was involved in the department’s initial pilot project at the C.D. Howe building in downtown Ottawa.

“We have (had) a great reaction since the launch of the project pilot; we have seen a slow but steady improvement in terms of recycling and waste diversion at all four Oscar stations at C.D. Howe.”

Now, the government is starting to get calls from other organizations interested in the technology, said Antosz.

“When they start to hear about what we’re doing, absolutely they want to come by and see it,” he said. “They want to try it. There are quite a few cases where you’re starting to see new Oscar units around town as people start to learn about this technology.”

OTHER NEWS

22 minutes ago

General election latest: Betting scandal count rises as Sunak and Starmer face off in last TV debate

22 minutes ago

Wrongly jailed former subpostmistress rejects apology of engineer whose evidence helped convict her

22 minutes ago

Medusa banking trojan returns to steal your passwords and cash — how to stay safe

22 minutes ago

UP: Govt appoints new DMs in 12 districts

22 minutes ago

Ange Postecoglou adds A-League winning coach Nick Montgomery to Tottenham staff

22 minutes ago

Emeli Sande, Damage and Dane Bowers team up with Coleen Rooney for charity bash

22 minutes ago

State government files lawsuit against horse farm after discovering massive manure pile likely contaminating water: 'Hundreds of thousands of cubic feet'

22 minutes ago

WikiLeaks founder Julian Assange walks out of court after being freed

22 minutes ago

Video: Brittany Hockley flaunts her insane abs in very revealing dress during her 'engagement moon' in the Maldives with fiancé Benjamin Siegrist

22 minutes ago

Melbourne woman shocked after filming neighbour's dangerous backyard act while she cooked lasagne in her kitchen

25 minutes ago

WSJ reporter Evan Gershkovich appears in court for trial on espionage charges he, his employer and the U.S. deny

28 minutes ago

Who is JD Vance, potential Trump VP candidate?

28 minutes ago

Mathew Rosengart - the attorney who helped free Britney Spears from her 13-year conservatorship - is no longer representing the singer: 'It's been an honor'

28 minutes ago

Popular ice cream maker recalls nearly 70 flavors and treats over listeria concerns

28 minutes ago

The 'awful' moments after Diana's death, polo with William and unseen pictures of the Prince and Kate: Designer who befriended the Princess tells all as she puts three of the royal's dresses up for sale (and they could fetch up to £1million)

28 minutes ago

Just Stop Oil protester who invaded Twickenham pitch during rugby match and threw orange powder insists he was 'doing my duty as a doctor' - as he and fellow eco-clown are cleared

28 minutes ago

Sutherland Shire Mayor Carmelo Pesce blasts lack of consultation about Albanese government's approval of offshore windfarm in his area as 'disgusting'

30 minutes ago

Extreme wildfires are on the rise globally, powered by the climate crisis

30 minutes ago

'Trying' Season 4 Review: "I Love This Series, Even With Its Flawed View On Adoption"

31 minutes ago

SEDD, Huawei exchange technological solutions

31 minutes ago

Tuesday Election Roundup: Boebert Handily Wins, Bowman Defeated, Trump-Backed Candidates Lose and More

31 minutes ago

TODAY reveals the newest Gerber baby: EXCLUSIVE

31 minutes ago

Federal court dismisses defamation claim by AFP officers against Shane Drumgold

31 minutes ago

Camila Cabello Shares the Advice Taylor Swift Once Gave Her About Overcoming Self-Doubt

31 minutes ago

‘His rehab is going well’: Nathan Cleary return date locked in as Panthers refuse to rush back their star playmaker

31 minutes ago

Celine Dion 'offered the chance to perform at Paris Olympics'

31 minutes ago

Oprah Winfrey recalls feeling 'shame' amid weight struggles

31 minutes ago

When I entered that sex therapist’s room the woman I used to be was lost. I fought for years to expose him

32 minutes ago

87 travellers caught at Changi Airport for failing to declare cash above $20k, pay taxes

32 minutes ago

Kylian Mbappe’s return fails to mask France shortcomings at Euro 2024

33 minutes ago

Sutherland Shire Mayor Carmelo Pesce blasts lack of consultation about Albanese government's approval of offshore windfarm in his area as 'disgusting'

35 minutes ago

Video: Julian Assange breaks down in tears as judge on US-controlled island declares him 'a free man' and sentences him to time served for espionage: WikiLeaks founder released without supervision for the first time in 14 years

35 minutes ago

Video: Footy star Christian Petracca is seen for the first time since horror injury ended his season and left him close to tears over its effect on his fiancée and family

36 minutes ago

UN-backed Kenyan police force arrives in Haiti amid surge in gang violence

37 minutes ago

‘Time has run out’ for Australia to procure submarines

37 minutes ago

Manulife boosts key profit target at investor day in Hong Kong

37 minutes ago

Fish Recall Sparks Warning to 15 States

37 minutes ago

Dubai's Dh30bn drainage plan will safeguard city's future, experts say

38 minutes ago

Jim Chalmers is 'running out of spin' as inflation surges

38 minutes ago

Tough Aussie calls after World Cup flop