USA: Unilever to develop new innovation centre in Connecticut

Unilever, the UK-headquartered consumer goods company, has unveiled plans to develop a new Global Innovation Center in New Haven, Connecticut. Opening by spring 2029, the digital-first and AI-powered centre will serve as a hub for research and development across the company’s personal care, beauty and wellbeing businesses.

Unilever will invest $270 million in the project over the long term, including $50 million in capital expenditure. The total combined public and private funding for the center will exceed $300 million.

The site will succeed Unilever’s existing R&D facility in Trumbull (CT), and is expected to house approximately 300 employees. The centre will combine all R&D capabilities under one roof, using artificial intelligence (AI) and future quantum computing capabilities to accelerate product development and advanced materials discovery. Specific installations will include a global centre for skin care and cleansing, a polycultural skin and hair centre of excellence, a human performance lab, a packaging innovation studio, and the Unilever Fragrance House.

Richard Slater, Unilever Chief Research & Development Officer, commented: “Our new Global Innovation Center will bring these capabilities together to develop new, category-defining innovations in the U.S., and scale globally. The real shift here is integration and speed: science, design and sensorials working as one, with AI and partnerships accelerating every stage of innovation”.

Source: Unilever