Unilever and Google Cloud forge five-year alliance for AI-driven growth

Unilever and Google Cloud have entered a five-year partnership to offer the FMCG access to the technology company’s advanced AI, data, platform, and marketing capabilities. 

Through the collaboration, Unilever can use Google Cloud’s technologies, including its enterprise AI platform, Vertex AI, to build new capabilities in brand discovery, measurement, and AI-augmented marketing. 

Unilever says access to these tools will create a new model for how consumer packaged goods (CPG) brands are discovered and shopped. The consumer journey is shifting toward more conversational and agentic experiences, such as using chatbots like ChatGPT for recommendations and advice.

“As brands are increasingly discovered and chosen in environments shaped by AI, we must lead this shift. This collaboration with Google Cloud sets a new level in how technology can power commerce and growth in the fast-moving consumer goods industry, ensuring Unilever is agile, fit for the future, and equipped to unlock value at every level of the company,” says Willem Uijen, chief supply chain and operations officer at Unilever. 

The partnership aims to accelerate Unilever’s business transformation by driving “growth and desirability” for its global brand portfolio. The consumer goods giant houses major personal care brands such as Dove, Lifebuoy, Dr.Squatch, and Wild. 

Unilever has been updating its marketing strategy following the release of its SASSY framework, as part of a broader effort to “premiumize” everyday brands and build what it calls “Desire at Scale.”

The framework is guiding the company into turning mass-market staples like Vaseline into emotionally compelling, aspirational products. The union with Google Cloud is another step in Unilever’s advertising developments. 

“Technology has moved to the core of value creation at Unilever,” says Uijen.Unilever and Google’s AI collaboration aims to reshape consumer engagement in the CPG industry. 

Unilever using AI

Unilever is migrating its integrated data and cloud platform to Google Cloud. The effort aims to build an enterprise-wide, AI-first digital backbone that generates demand faster, turns data into actionable insights, and responds to market shifts with greater agility. 

The technological foundation will also support the development of agentic workflows — intelligent systems capable of executing complex tasks across Unilever’s business processes. 

Tara Brady, president, EMEA, at Google Cloud, says: “In partnering with Unilever as it boldly reimagines its business processes, we are not just modernising legacy systems, we are deploying our advanced models, such as Gemini, to create a system of intelligence that reasons, learns, and acts. This will set a new standard for agility and consumer engagement in the CPG sector.”

The collaboration will focus on three core pillars: agentic commerce and marketing intelligence, advanced AI, and an integrated data and cloud foundation. 

The two companies will build “next-generation” marketing capabilities across brand discovery, conversion, and measurement to help Unilever be at the forefront of technological and consumer-habits shifts. Unilever will transition key enterprise applications and data platforms to Google Cloud, creating a connected environment for scalable AI deployment across the value chain.

Additionally, the partnership will fast-track Unilever’s adoption of pioneering technologies, combining its expertise with Google’s AI capabilities in an effort to sustain its long-term competitive edge in the CPG market.

In a similar development, Coty and OpenAI, the creator of ChatGPT, announced a collaboration to expand the beauty company’s use of AI across selected parts of its global business. The deal grants Coty access to ChatGPT Enterprise, enabling employees to use OpenAI’s “most capable” models with advanced security and privacy protections. According to Coty, the AI will support employees in their daily work and collaboration to improve efficiency and operability.

Shifting priorities 

Unilever’s most recent financials indicate a focus on its personal care offerings. Its 2025 financial release demonstrated the company’s focus on portfolio reshaping with premium beauty brand acquisitions and a demerger in the Foods segment. Google Cloud’s advanced AI tools aim to empower Unilever’s marketing strategy. 

The multinational company recently announced the sale of its Home Care business in Colombia and Ecuador to Alicorp. The sale aligned with Unilever’s strategy to optimize its portfolio by focusing on high-growth, sustainable categories.

“We’re on a journey to premiumize our brands — luxury brands have long mastered the art of creating that ‘I just have to have it’ feeling, and there’s a lot to learn from how they spark desire,” Esi Eggleston Bracey, chief growth and marketing officer at Unilever, previously told Personal Care Insights.

Last month, Unilever’s pivot away from slower-growth legacy products also led it to sell its SariWangi tea business in Indonesia to PT Savoria Kreasi Rasa, a fast-growing local FMCG group.