Unilever : AI hub accelerates product innovation for Chinese markets and beyond

Deep in the heart of Shanghai's business district is a new Unilever hub that is set to transform the speed with which we bring products to market for Chinese consumers.

It's the brainchild of a small group of Unilever's R&D experts including Senior R&D Manager for Skin Care Jason Wei and Global Skin Care Digital Processing Manager Jake Onyett, who currently manage the space.

Known as the AI hub, it shares its name with the Chinese character for love 爱. The name reflects its status as a centre for artificial intelligence and acknowledges the agility and innovation expected to go on inside the building's four walls.

'There's room for three to four teams to work in parallel, as well as space for consumers and stakeholders during workshops,' says Jake. 'But the aim is to keep the space and the number of people who work here is entirely agile.'

The facility has been designed to ramp up the speed of product innovation 'in China and for China', from several months to a matter of minutes.

State-of-the-art hardware helps to make this happen. High-performance computers are equipped with modelling software to develop product concepts, create 3D packaging designs and ready prototypes to test with consumers. And Unilever can call on a global talent pool of data analysts, modellers and engineers who can work remotely or in the hub to bring project ideas to life.