Unilever to Test Quantum Computing in U.S. Innovation Center
Unilever is aiming to unlock new advances in technologies such as AI and quantum computing through a new global innovation center.
Located in New Haven, Connecticut, the center will house research and development efforts for the company's beauty, well-being and personal care power brands — categories that currently represent 51% of Unilever's business and will grow to two-thirds.
Teams working in this space will explore the potential of quantum computing and breakthroughs in neuroscience, skin biology and human physiology, creating what the company calls "new dimensions of wellness and sensory experience."
With faster materials discovery, product testing and development — and with each stage of the innovation cycle (formulation, fragrance creation, packaging design, consumer insights) under one roof — Unilever expects to get products to market faster.
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The innovation hub will include:
- A global center for skin care and cleansing, as well as a polycultural skin and hair center of excellence, which specializes in creating ingredients and products that address unmet consumer needs.
- A human performance lab that will generate new data and insights into human physiology, enabling on-site testing of ingestibles.
- A Unilever fragrance house where perfumists, chemists and packaging designers will work together from the earliest stages of development to product creation and developing sensory experiences.
- A packaging innovation studio that incorporates real-time consumer feedback to enable the faster development of packaging prototypes.
“The center will bring these capabilities together to create products that are developed in the U.S. and built to scale globally. The step change here is integration and speed: science, design and sensorials working as one, with AI accelerating every stage of the cycle,” Richard Slater, Unilever chief R&D officer, said in a statement.
More About the Center
Unilever selected New Haven for the location's proximity to dozens of universities and technology companies, providing an opportunity for its internal scientists and engineers to co-create with researchers and tech partners. This will help the company use advanced neuroscience to create products that connect sensory attributes such as texture, fragrance and bioactives with emotional, behavioral and wellness responses.
“This new center is where we'll innovate at the intersection of science, technology and culture,” Herrish Patel, president of Unilever USA and CEO of the company's personal care business in North America, said in a statement. “As the U.S. becomes a center of gravity for Unilever, we’re harnessing the best of American innovation to match our growth ambition here in the U.S. and around the world.”
Over the long term, Unilever expects to invest $270 million in the project — its biggest R&D investment in the U.S. in 40 years. When fully operational, likely by spring 2029, the center will employ around 300 employees.
