Unilever announced a fresh investment of €35 million to enhance its research and development capabilities in India, with plans to transform its Mumbai and Bengaluru centres into next-generation, AI-led innovation hubs. According to reports from The Hindu BusinessLine and NDTV Profit, the Anglo-Dutch consumer goods giant said the Mumbai facility will be repositioned as a 'Product Innovation Centre', bringing together artificial intelligence, digital technologies, product and packaging design, rapid prototyping and scale-up capabilities under one integrated ecosystem. The investment builds on more than €20 million Unilever has already spent on its India R&D infrastructure over the past five years, which included a Liquids Lab of the Future, an in-house Fragrance House, the Advanced Manufacturing Center for Bars, the Packaging and Flexibles Design Lab, and AI and digital modelling platforms. As announced on November 4, the fresh investment will strengthen the company's India R&D ecosystem, while the proposed transformation will position the Mumbai facility as a product innovation centre that will bring together AI and Digital powered foresight and insights, new measurement approaches, product & format science, product and packaging design, rapid prototyping, scale-up capabilities and market facing deployment within a single integrated environment.
The Bengaluru hub will continue as a global science, technology and partnership hub, focusing on foundational and application science, AI and digital capabilities, India Foods R&D, and collaborations with academic institutions and start-ups. As reported by The Hindu BusinessLine and NDTV Profit, the announcement builds on more than €20 million Unilever has already spent on its India R&D infrastructure over the past five years, which included a Liquids Lab of the Future, an in-house Fragrance House, and AI and digital modelling platforms. The two India hubs together employ over 800 scientists, researchers, digital specialists, and designers, making India one of Unilever's largest R&D locations globally. According to NDTV Profit, the company plans to deploy AI-powered experimentation, automation, predictive modelling and digital twins to accelerate research, product development and commercialisation across both centres, enabling scientists and product developers to explore more possibilities, learn faster, and translate promising ideas into scalable innovations with greater speed and precision. The Mumbai facility will bring together AI-powered consumer insights, product and format science, packaging design, rapid prototyping and scale-up capabilities under one integrated ecosystem, while featuring collaborative spaces for partnerships with academic institutions, experts, suppliers, start-ups and design networks.
Separately, Unilever earmarked €5 million over five years for a Bio-Futures partnership in India, aimed at connecting its global R&D pipeline with India's rapidly growing bioscience ecosystem. According to The Hindu BusinessLine and NDTV Profit, the focus areas include microbiome science, biotechnology, biomanufacturing, and AI-enabled biology. The partnership will bring together leading scientific institutions, start-ups, advanced infrastructure and talent to accelerate innovation across human biology, microbiome science, biotechnology, biomanufacturing and digital and AI-enabled biology. The initiative will create a platform that connects Unilever's global R&D capabilities with India's rapidly growing bioscience ecosystem, bringing together scientific institutions, start-ups, infrastructure and talent to accelerate innovation. This Bio-Futures partnership extends the investment beyond Unilever's internal facilities, requiring access to specialised talent and research infrastructure that typically exists across multiple institutions rather than inside one company.
The proposed transformation envisions the Mumbai hub as a new 'Product Innovation Centre' that will bring together AI and Digital powered foresight and insights, new measurement approaches, product & format science, product and packaging design, rapid prototyping, scale-up capabilities and market facing deployment within a single integrated environment. As reported by The Hindu BusinessLine and NDTV Profit, both the India R&D hubs operate as an integral part of Unilever's global R&D network and encompass a range of new science and technology research, innovation, product development and market-facing activities. The distinction between the two locations suggests a distributed urban model rather than a single headquarters strategy: Mumbai is being positioned around product innovation, design, prototyping and market-facing deployment, while Bengaluru will continue to focus on science, technology, food research, digital capabilities and partnerships. Both hubs will leverage Unilever's global science, technology platforms, scientific know-how and intellectual property in accordance with the respective activities undertaken across the India R&D ecosystem. The New Product Innovation Center will also bring in collaborative spaces catalyzing new-age partnerships with Academia, Experts, Suppliers, Start-ups and larger design ecosystems.
Richard Slater, Chief Research and Development Officer, Unilever, said, "India is a critical global R&D centre for Unilever. This investment will enable a more connected way of innovating, bringing together science, insights, design, digital technology, AI, rapid prototyping and scale-up capabilities. By connecting Unilever with India's world-class bioscience ecosystem, we can harness complementary science, capabilities and partnerships to accelerate the next generation of Bio-Futures innovation for India and the world." Sam Kini, Chief Digital & Technology Officer at Unilever, shared insights on how AI is unlocking insights and business agility across the value chain to drive product innovation and smarter, faster decisions to better serve consumers and deliver growth. Priya Nair, Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer, Hindustan Unilever Ltd, said, "India's emergence as a global innovation powerhouse presents an extraordinary opportunity. As one of the world's fastest-growing large economies, we see significant potential to bring world-class, science-led innovation to Indian consumers. This investment reinforces Unilever R&D's long-standing commitment to India and its confidence in the country's scientific talent, capabilities, innovation ecosystem and India's emerging position in bio sciences and bio manufacturing."
