Unilever will invest an additional €35 million, or about Rs 373 crore, in its research and development operations in Mumbai and Bengaluru, expanding facilities focused on product innovation, artificial intelligence-led research and biotechnology. The investment strengthens both cities’ roles in India’s corporate science and technology ecosystem.
The announcement follows €20 million, or Rs 213 crore, invested by the company in India over the past five years. That earlier spending supported a fragrance research centre, a liquids laboratory, an advanced manufacturing centre for bars and packaging design capabilities, Unilever said in a release.
India is Unilever’s second-largest market after the United States and one of its largest research and development hubs. The company said its Indian operations employ more than 800 scientists, researchers, digital specialists and designers.
Unilever plans to develop its Mumbai facility into a product innovation centre. The site will focus on consumer insights, product and packaging design, AI-led research, faster prototyping and scale-up capabilities. These functions bring research, design and manufacturing-oriented development closer together within the company’s innovation network.
The Bengaluru centre will continue to focus on science and technology research, digital capabilities and partnerships with academic institutions and startups. The division between the two hubs gives Mumbai a stronger product and design role while retaining Bengaluru’s focus on scientific research, digital work and external collaboration, based on the company’s stated plans.
“This investment will enable a more connected way of innovating, bringing together science, insights, design, digital technology, AI, rapid prototyping and scale-up capabilities,” Richard Slater, Unilever’s chief research and development officer, said in the company’s statement.
The company will also invest €5 million, or Rs 53 crore, over five years in a Bio-Futures partnership in India. The partnership will connect Unilever’s global research and development network with domestic scientific institutions, startups and biotechnology infrastructure. Its focus areas will include human biology, microbiome science, biotechnology, biomanufacturing and digital and AI-enabled biology.
For Mumbai and Bengaluru, the announcement adds to the concentration of specialised corporate research, digital expertise and scientific employment in the two metropolitan regions. The investment also links private-sector research activity with academic institutions, startups and biotechnology infrastructure, although the company has not disclosed a project-wise spending schedule or additional employment target.
“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 biosciences and biomanufacturing,” Priya Nair, managing director of Hindustan Unilever, said.
The company’s next steps are to expand the Mumbai product innovation centre, continue science and technology work in Bengaluru and implement the five-year Bio-Futures partnership with Indian research and biotechnology institutions.
