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Interested in Reckitt Benckiser Group plc? Here are five stocks we like better.<\/a><\/p>\n Reckitt Benckiser said it is embedding AI, predictive modeling, and digital science across its innovation process to speed product development, improve launch success, and support efficiency gains. Executives linked the effort to the company\u2019s 4% to 5% growth outlook and its goal of cutting fixed costs below 19% of net revenue by 2027.<\/p>\n The company highlighted major progress in R&D adoption, saying it has conducted more than 10,000 virtual experiments since January, trained over 2,000 colleagues, and grown its innovation pipeline by more than 1.5 times since mid-2023. Reckitt also said it launched 29 new innovations in Q1 2026, about 20% more than a year earlier.<\/p>\n Examples such as Vanish, Lysol, Gaviscon, and Dettol showed how AI is being used to optimize formulas, speed testing, simulate manufacturing, and improve packaging. Reckitt also unveiled plans for a new global science and innovation center in Shanghai to further expand these capabilities.<\/p>\n Reckitt Benckiser Group (LON:RKT) executives used an investor \u201cFocus On\u201d event to outline how the company is applying digital science, artificial intelligence and predictive modeling across its innovation process, saying the capabilities are intended to support faster product development, stronger launch execution and efficiency gains.<\/p>\n Shannon Eisenhardt, Reckitt\u2019s chief financial officer, said the company\u2019s digital science work is tied to its broader strategy of focusing on 11 \u201cpower brands\u201d and delivering long-term financial commitments. She said the presentation was not intended to introduce new financial targets, but to provide more visibility into how Reckitt operates.<\/p>\n \u2192 Micron Investors Face a High-Stakes Moment After the Latest Rally<\/a><\/p>\n Eisenhardt said digital science is helping Reckitt innovate \u201cfaster, at greater scale, and with higher success rates,\u201d supporting the company\u2019s confidence in its 4% to 5% growth guidance. She also linked the work to Reckitt\u2019s goal of reducing fixed costs to below 19% of net revenue by the end of 2027.<\/p>\n Digital science embedded across innovation <\/p>\n Dr. Angela Naef, Reckitt\u2019s chief R&D officer, said the company has been building its digital science capabilities since 2020, including proprietary data, brand-specific models and changes to how teams work. Reckitt\u2019s global R&D organization includes more than 4,000 scientific and technical professionals, she said.<\/p>\n \u2192 How Bad Could Tesla\u2019s Cybertruck Recall Be for Shares?<\/a><\/p>\n Naef described digital science as a combination of predictive science, simulation and generative AI applied across the product life cycle: ideation, development, launch, activation and optimization. She said the approach is designed to help Reckitt \u201cprove value earlier, fail faster when something won\u2019t win, and scale what works with more precision.\u201d<\/p>\n Reckitt said it has moved from fewer than 100 virtual experiments a year three years ago to more than 10,000 virtual experiments since January. Naef said digital science tools are now deployed across all of Reckitt\u2019s power brands and in more than 20 markets, with more than 2,000 colleagues across R&D and marketing trained on the capabilities.<\/p>\n \u2192 Reading the Stripes: Is The Industrial Recession Over?<\/a><\/p>\n Naef also said Reckitt\u2019s average innovation project size in 2026 has grown by about 25% year-over-year, measured by expected incremental net revenue. The power brands pipeline, measured by net revenue from innovations, has increased by more than 1.5 times since mid-2023, she said. Reckitt launched 29 new innovations in the first quarter of 2026, about 20% more than in the same period a year earlier.<\/p>\n Examples across Vanish, Lysol, Gaviscon and Dettol <\/p>\n Bastien Parizot, Reckitt\u2019s SVP of global business services and AI transformation, highlighted Vanish as an example of digital science in the ideation stage. The company said its \u201cdigital active learning\u201d approach helped support the launch of Vanish Turbo by combining computational modeling, consumer insights and formula optimization. Keyla Lazardi, SVP of germ protection and household care, said the approach reduced the error rate in predicting consumer perception by 75% and increased overall consumer liking from 8.4 to 9.1. Parizot said the product delivered about 6% net revenue growth with a core U.K. retailer after activation.<\/p>\n For Lysol Air Sanitizer, Reckitt said it used digital science and computational design while working with experts in aerobiology and the U.S. EPA to establish testing methods for reducing viruses and bacteria in the air. Jan Vindberg-Larsen, SVP for regulatory affairs and safety, said the example showed how Reckitt uses computational design to create \u201cevidence-led innovation.\u201d Reckitt said Lysol Air Sanitizer grew net revenue by about 20% in 2025, now contributes a mid-single-digit percentage of net revenue to the Lysol portfolio, and carries a gross margin premium of about 100 basis points.<\/p>\n Mark Ripley, SVP of self care and intimate wellness, discussed the use of digital twins in Gaviscon manufacturing. He said virtual replicas of products, equipment and processes allow Reckitt to simulate scale-up before committing capital, time and resources. Naef said a small batch at Gaviscon\u2019s Hull site costs about \u00a325,000 and 30 person hours, while a large factory-scale batch costs more than \u00a3100,000 and requires more than 300 person hours. She said trials can now be simulated in under two hours.<\/p>\n Reckitt also pointed to a redesigned Dettol antiseptic liquid bottle as an example of using 3D modeling and simulation to improve packaging. The company said the bottle uses PET, has greater recyclability attributes than the prior bottle, can deliver up to 400 tons of plastic savings, improve pallet efficiency by up to 33% and save around \u00a35 million per year.<\/p>\n AI platform and WriteIt tool <\/p>\n Parizot also described WriteIt, Reckitt\u2019s GxP-compliant AI platform for document drafting, literature searches and protocol generation. He said documentation historically consumed 30% to 40% of R&D time. WriteIt can make drafting and reviewing industrial trial reports up to eight times faster, he said.<\/p>\n Reckitt said more than 650 R&D users had been trained on WriteIt by February 2026, with plans to extend training to more than 2,000 users, or roughly half of the R&D community, during the rest of the year.<\/p>\n Nigel Richardson, Reckitt\u2019s chief information and digitisation officer, said the company began investing in cloud and data foundations in 2020 and started its generative AI transformation in 2024. He said Reckitt\u2019s data and AI platform, called Trinity, powers scalable AI applications and is designed with compliance controls. Richardson said Reckitt\u2019s AI approach is based on business-led decisions, disciplined investment, capability building and scalable infrastructure.<\/p>\n Governance, adoption and next steps <\/p>\n During a question-and-answer session, executives said adoption of AI tools has involved both excitement and skepticism. Parizot said co-designing tools with teams and keeping \u201chuman in the lead\u201d helped drive acceptance. Naef said R&D leadership approached generative AI as a learning opportunity and made tools part of the organization\u2019s broader toolbox.<\/p>\n Executives also said Reckitt\u2019s advantage comes from applying AI to proprietary consumer data, product knowledge and market context rather than relying on generic tools. Richardson said Reckitt uses a responsible AI framework developed with its legal team and maintains human accountability for AI-supported work.<\/p>\n Naef announced that Reckitt plans to open a new global science and innovation center in Shanghai in July. She said the hub will include capabilities such as live streaming, consumer co-creation, sensory testing, advanced material science, claims development, microbiology, predictive simulation and scale-up support.<\/p>\n About Reckitt Benckiser Group (LON:RKT) <\/p>\n At Reckitt, we protect, heal and nurture. We are the company behind some of the world’s best known and most trusted Health and Hygiene consumer brands. Delivering for a cleaner, healthier world requires strong brands with a global footprint. From Dettol, Lysol, Durex, Finish, Harpic and Vanish, Mucinex, Nurofen, Gaviscon, Veet and Strepsils, consumers love and rely on our brands to care for their families, as they have done for over 200 years. We use our scientific expertise and deep human understanding to develop solutions to help people improve their lives \u2013 that is why over 30 million Reckitt products are sold each day worldwide. At Reckitt, we’re all making a real difference to people all over the world, every day.<\/p>\n This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest reporting and unbiased coverage. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.<\/p>\n