Unilever implements AI and digital twins to revolutionize product photography
This initiative allows Unilever to streamline product photography by cutting costs, doubling efficiency, and supporting sustainability.
UK – Unilever, the British multinational Fast-Moving Consumer Goods (FMCG) company, has transformed its approach to product photography by integrating Artificial Intelligence (AI) and digital twin technology.
This innovation is reshaping the way product imagery is created, allowing for faster content production while significantly reducing costs.
Using platforms like NVIDIA Omniverse, Unilever has developed highly detailed, three-dimensional digital replicas of its products.
These digital twins encompass various product variants, labels, and language formats, ensuring precise and consistent representation.
By adopting Open Universal Scene Description (USD), Unilever has also enhanced compatibility across its systems and suppliers, streamlining workflows.
Esi Eggleston Bracey, Unilever’s Chief Growth and Marketing Officer, stated, “We’ve transformed what was once a complex, slow process into a marketing system that frees up our teams to focus on what they do best—think bigger, be creative, push boundaries, and create magic for our brands.”
“This isn’t about pushing out more content – anyone can do that. It’s about starting with a deep understanding of people’s needs and desires, executing our campaigns creatively and backed by a high-quality content creation machine to deliver desire at scale.”
Traditionally, product imagery required extensive physical photoshoots for every variation, a time-consuming and resource-intensive process.
Now, with digital twins, Unilever has eliminated the need for repeated photoshoots, cutting costs by 50% while doubling efficiency.
This innovative approach accelerates production and supports sustainability by reducing packaging waste and energy consumption associated with traditional photography methods.
TRESemmé Thailand, a haircare brand, has achieved 87% reduction in content creation costs, a 5% increase in purchase intent, and a twofold increase in content production speed.
Unilever’s Beauty & Wellbeing business group was the first to pilot the technology, integrating it into its content creation workflow across product lines for TRESemmé, Dove, Vaseline, and Clear.
As a result, the company has seen up to 55% cost savings, a 65% faster turnaround in content production, double the click-through rate, and audience engagement that lasts three times longer.
By integrating AI and digital twins into its marketing processes, Unilever is redefining the standards of efficiency, creativity, and environmental responsibility.
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