- Unilever to invest €35 million to enhance R&D centres in Mumbai and Bengaluru
- Mumbai centre will become an AI-led product innovation hub with integrated capabilities
- Bengaluru hub to focus on science, AI, India Foods R&D, and academic collaborations
Global consumer goods major Unilever Plc, the parent company of Hindustan Unilever Ltd, announced an additional investment of €35 million to strengthen its research and development capabilities in India, with plans to transform its Mumbai and Bengaluru centres into next-generation, AI-led innovation hubs.
The investment will build on the more than €20 million invested by the company over the past five years in advanced R&D capabilities, including fragrance, packaging, manufacturing and AI-led digital modelling platforms.
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Unilever said the proposed transformation will position its Mumbai facility 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.
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The Bengaluru centre, meanwhile, will continue to develop 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. The company's India R&D ecosystem currently brings together more than 800 scientists, researchers, digital specialists and designers, making India one of Unilever's largest global R&D hubs.
Focus On AI And Biosciences
Across both centres, Unilever plans to deploy AI-powered experimentation, automation, predictive modelling and digital twins to accelerate research, product development and commercialisation. The company will also invest €5 million over five years in a strategic Bio-Futures partnership in India. The initiative will connect Unilever's global R&D capabilities with India's growing bioscience ecosystem.
The partnership will focus on areas such as human biology, microbiome science, biotechnology, biomanufacturing and AI-enabled biology, bringing together scientific institutions, start-ups, infrastructure and talent.
Richard Slater, chief research and development officer at Unilever, said India is a critical global R&D centre for the company and that the investment will help integrate science, consumer insights, design, digital technology and AI capabilities.
Priya Nair, managing director and chief executive officer of Hindustan Unilever, said India's emergence as a global innovation hub presents significant opportunities to bring science-led innovation to consumers. She added that the investment reinforces Unilever R&D's long-standing commitment to India and its confidence in the country's scientific talent, innovation ecosystem and emerging capabilities in biosciences and biomanufacturing.
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