In an announcement made on Monday, March 21, tech giant Apple introduced a robotic system - dubbed 'Liam' - which has the capability to rip apart iPhones for recycling purposes.

Unveiling the Liam robotic system, Apple said that the system - which has taken three years in development - can take apart junked iPhones, and can recover valuable recyclable materials from the handsets. The materials which the Liam robotic system recovers from trashed iPhones include materials like silver, gold, tungsten, aluminum, copper, tin, and cobalt.

The apparent objective behind Apple's development of the Liam robotic system for ripping apart junked iPhones and recovering recyclable valuable materials is that the company evidently wants to address criticism that its sleek and seamless-in-design devices are so tightly built that it is difficult to disassemble, refurbish and recycle their components.

According to the details shared by Apple, the Liam robotic system is capable of ripping apart an iPhone barely 11 seconds for recovering valuable materials from it. As such, if Liam works uninterrupted it can, at the mentioned rate, take apart a few million iPhones each year.

Revealing that the Liam robotic system started operating at its full capacity in February 2016; Apple said that the system comprises 29 robotic modules on one single site in the vicinity of Apple headquarters in Cupertino, California.