Commercialise business opportunities in the circular economy with AI
So many forces. So many directions. And yet — a path through. Let me find it!
Are your circular processes effective?
Effective circular economy isn’t solely about regulations; it’s also about creating momentum using the right methods and tools.
AI can become an essential catalyst in your circular economy processes – cutting costs, freeing resources from repetitive tasks, and enabling sustainable innovation for your customers.
I find strong AI use cases in every sustainability business that significantly reduce effort, enable circular innovation, and increase revenue.
I help sustainability businesses reduce effort, enable circular innovation, and increase revenue with AI.
Many sustainability professionals struggle with …
- Overwhelming data, often incomplete or hidden in silos.
- Exhausting education of colleagues and clients again and again.
- Chased by constantly evolving regulations and material flows.
- Unclear complexity and costs of circular business models
- Lack of innovative steps forward to reach their goals
How clients benefit from my work
Finally, handle data mess with ease.
- Have all needed data available in a single source of truth
- Customize data from different sources in the formats you need
- Easily curate data to the specific needs of your business
Increased revenue from circularity expertise.
- Provide your knowledge as a (paid) self-service for stakeholders
- Let AI handle repetitive educational tasks
- Create leads and cross-department buy-in
Take advantage of regulations and market dynamics.
- Let AI agents monitor regulations and market dynamics
- Let AI explain the impact of changes on your business
- Only get alerted when action is needed (“need-to-know principle”)
Steps to more circular innovation.
- Streamline operations with automation
- Ai tailors knowledge into Design4Circularity workflows
- Optimize your supply chain and take-back processes
Worried about energy consumption of AI?
Whenever feasible, I use sustainable AI providers like GreenPT, including in backend technology. GreenPT decreases energy consumption by running selected smaller AI models hosted with proven sustainable providers across Europe. Furthermore, I use effective methods, such as prompt compression, to keep the energy usage of AI as low as possible.
Why do sustainability leaders call me?
Because in practice many of their ambitions crash into legacy systems, fragmented data, and value-chain partners moving in different directions.
They’ve already advanced their sustainability goals and earned praise from boards and clients—yet the next 20 percent of impact remains locked behind data silos and partners who haven’t caught up.
What they don’t need is another glossy slide deck or a generic AI proof-of-concept; they need a sparring partner who translates real-world circular challenges into AI solutions that enable innovation, increase efficiency and grows profit.
That’s where I come in.
Programs
Start lean and fast
AI Discovery
A 4 to 6-week project designed to uncover structural challenges and pain points in your sustainability processes.
The result is a company ready for immediate execution of AI improvements.
Best for
- Circular Economy Advisories and Sustainability teams evaluating the most impactful AI use cases for their business.
Circularity as a digital service
A focused 10 to 12-week program to transform consulting service into an AI-driven software product
Unlocking stable revenue and high-quality consulting leads.
Best for
- Circular Economy Advisories searching for stable revenue streams
- Agencies with extensive sustainability expertise
AI in your workflows
A technical integration of AI into circular economy processes. Setup of tools, training staff, and implementation of customized, impactful AI solutions.
Results include cost reduction, freeing resources from repetitive tasks, and enabling sustainable innovation.
Best for
- Sustainability providers searching for effective improvements
- SMEs deploying circular business models
Sustainability leaders that benefited from my work
Christian Dinter
Managing Director, Rodiek, part of Nehlsen AG
International Consulting on Sustainable Recycling
Our collaboration with Sönke and OpenEyz has significantly expanded our capabilities in sustainable recycling and the circular economy.
Sönke has a remarkable ability to truly understand our complex challenges in the circular economy and to combine those insights with AI capabilities. We collaborate with OpenEyz to advance sustainable recycling in the Global South even further through the use of AI.
Sebastian Frisch
Co-Founder, Senior Partner, Black Forest Solutions GmbH
Worldwide waste management & EPR solutions
Together with OpenEyz and two corporate clients from Dubai/UAE we explored AI-driven solutions for sustainable packaging and EPR policymaking.
Sönke’s strong AI expertise and domain knowledge in recycling led to fast impactful solutions. We’re now continuing our collaboration to shape our AI strategy and develop a market-ready solution for the UAE.
About Sönke Petersen
AI Expert in the Circular Economy, Founder OpenEyz
With 18 years at the heart of Volkswagen Group’s R&D and digital transformation, he guides forward-thinking companies in weaving AI into the core of their circular-economy processes.
A clear thinker and tenacious listener, he quickly identifies the structural issues in circular systems. With strong technical expertise in AI and digital transformation, he translates these into tailored AI solutions that drive sustainability impact.
(c) Foto: Fotografenteam vncy
Recent insights
- Let AI do the circularity trick – Icebreaker for circular business models.
I tried AI in the development of circular business cases. It is ready for management buy-in, as it provides a comprehensive overview of benefits, risks, and to-dos. - Advances in AI-enabled Circular Business
Circular design experts Àlex Jimenez, Sönke Petersen, and Pierre Armengaud demonstrate how AI bridges critical gaps in sustainable product development.
Successful case studies
with AI
Sustainable Packaging
“ Design 4 Recycling AI Tool “
- Quick packaging design validation reduces R&D cycle times.
- Reduces EPR fees through optimized packaging choices.
- Continuously updates guidelines to reflect evolving EPR requirements.
Waste Management
“ It’s like having our global expertise at my fingertips. “
- Consultancy accumulated valuable, yet scattered waste management knowledge over years.
- Introduced an AI-powered knowledge platform that makes insights accessible in natural language.
Circularity in the construction sector
“ Before this system, I spent hours reviewing dozens of analog documents. “
- Identifying reusable components in old construction sites manually is slow, costly, and labor-intensive.
- AI prototype analyzes and scans extensive technical documentation, automatically extracting material data.