Packaging Innovations 2026: Greyparrot director talks AI platform Deepnest for waste recovery

At Packaging Innovations 2026 in Birmingham, UK, Greyparrot will present Deepnest, its latest AI platform for waste analytics. The platform measures packaging performance based on recovery rates.

Ahead of the show, Packaging Insights speaks to Yaseed Chaumoo, managing director of Deepnest by Greyparrot, to discuss the company’s presentation on how it can help packagers understand what happens to their products after disposal, and how to design packaging with recovery and regulatory targets in mind.

What can attendees expect from your presentation at Packaging Innovations?

Chaumoo: Packaging waste regulation will be top-of-mind at this year’s conference.

Visitors can expect a practical, data-led view of how packaging recyclability is fast becoming a cost and compliance issue, and how AI-powered waste intelligence helps brands get ahead of EPR and EU Packaging and Packaging Waste Regulation (PPWR).

Greyparrot will show how Deepnest.ai uses real-world data from global sorting facilities to reveal what actually happens to packaging after disposal, helping producers benchmark their exposure to EPR fees, identify which designs fail in real systems, and prioritize changes that improve recyclability and reduce future costs.

I will explain how AI is transforming recyclability measurement beyond guidelines and lab tests, while case studies from Unilever and The Cup Collective will demonstrate how leading brands are already using this data to prove recovery, anticipate regulatory risk, and make better packaging decisions.

Greyparrot’s sessions include a keynote on “AI-driven packaging waste intelligence to boost recycling and cut EPR costs: Introducing Deepnest by Greyparrot.” The company will also join the Big Debate: “AI will do far more to improve packaging waste management than the government’s packaging reforms.”

Overall, visitors will leave with a clear understanding of how to turn regulatory pressure into smarter design choices and measurable, proven progress on circularity.

What trends do you expect to see at the show, and how is Deepnest targeting them?

Deepnest uses data from global sorting facilities to reveal what happens to packaging after disposal.Chaumoo: The arrival of the UK’s packaging EPR (pEPR) and PPWR will be top-of-mind at this year’s show. We’ll be showcasing Deepnest’s ability to help brands and retailers prepare for this paradigm shift in packaging waste management.

We’ll also be leading the conversation on AI’s transformation of the entire packaging lifecycle. We expect to see AI playing a role from ideation to prototyping and supply chain optimization, and we’ll be there to highlight the critical importance of considering a product’s end-of-life from the beginning of the development cycle.

An overwhelming focus on circularity will tie regulation and AI together this year. As packaging teams contend with a seismic shift in packaging priorities, we’ll explain how Deepnest eliminates uncertainty and enables them to make measurable progress on recyclability.

How does Deepnest foresee an alignment between brands, PROs, and regulators in practice?

Chaumoo: For too long, brands, Producer Responsibility Organizations (PROs), and regulators have lacked a “single source of truth” on packaging recovery. In the absence of meaningful packaging waste data, each has been forced to rely on hypothetical modeling and limited testing to understand how different materials and formats behave in the waste system. 

The result has been regulations that do not reflect the realities of waste recovery, and packaging designs that are technically recyclable but almost impossible to recover in practice.

Deepnest is changing that. By providing the first large-scale insight into packaging waste, it is already surfacing data that has implications for regulation and packaging design. Data from one UK facility revealed that the recovery rates for clear and colored PET are vastly different, despite being taxed the same amount under the UK’s current EPR scheme. Technically-recyclable formats like composite cartons, too, see low recovery rates in many facilities.

Highlighting insights like these will ensure that regulation is targeted appropriately and that brands know they’re designing products with real-world recovery systems in mind.

How is Deepnest already helping packaging companies meet PPWR and pEPR requirements?

Chaumoo: Packaging companies are already using Deepnest to prepare for PPWR and the UK’s pEPR scheme. Sector leaders like are tracking specific products in the waste stream to understand which get recovered, and which pose a challenge to circularity.

That insight helps packaging teams prioritize design improvements ahead of new regulations, focusing on the (often minor) tweaks that lead to lower fees. Deepnest’s massive datasets chart the impact of specific format, design, and material choices, giving users the confidence to make changes that will actually improve recovery rates.