Colgate Drives Advanced AI Adoption to 51% of Staff

Edgen Stock·Mar 04 2026, 04:03

Share to

Share to

Copy link

Key Takeaways

Colgate-Palmolive has successfully increased the adoption of advanced artificial intelligence tools among its white-collar workforce, integrating AI into core business operations to improve efficiency. Led by a dedicated AI chief, the company is pursuing a structured strategy to expand usage further, focusing on tangible returns and employee augmentation.

AI Adoption Metric: By the end of last year, 51% of salaried and clerical workers were using advanced AI tools weekly, a significant increase from one-third in late 2022.
Strategic Rollout: The company's global head of AI, Iraklis Pappas, is driving adoption through workshops, myth-busting, and an internal "AI ambassador" program, aiming for a 10 percentage point increase each quarter.
Operational Impact: A successful AI pilot at a Greek plant that translated manuals to reduce downtime has been scaled to 43 manufacturing sites globally, demonstrating a focus on practical business cases.

Colgate Boosts Advanced AI Usage to 51% of Staff

Colgate-Palmolive has driven a significant increase in artificial intelligence adoption, with 51% of its salaried and clerical employees using advanced AI tools weekly by the end of last year. This marks a substantial rise from approximately one-third of its white-collar workforce using such tools shortly after the release of ChatGPT in late 2022. The initiative is spearheaded by Iraklis ‘Kli’ Pappas, the company's global head of AI, who champions deep integration of the technology.

The company distinguishes between simple AI-assisted tasks and the "advanced" use it tracks, which includes deep research, data analysis, and coding in platforms like Google’s Gemini and ChatGPT Assistants. To accelerate this trend, Pappas has set a goal to increase the share of advanced users by 10 percentage points every quarter this year, pushing toward near-total adoption across Colgate's white-collar teams.

Greek AI Pilot Scales to 43 Global Production Sites

Colgate's AI strategy is delivering tangible operational efficiencies, not just tracking usage metrics. A key success story originated at a manufacturing plant in Athens that was experiencing production delays because equipment manuals were only available in German, French, and English. The plant manager developed an AI assistant that could translate the documents and answer questions in Greek, enabling employees to service machinery and reduce downtime.

Following the pilot's success, Colgate expanded the tool to 43 of its manufacturing and production sites around the world. This approach aligns with the company's "responsible AI principles," which emphasize augmenting employees rather than replacing them. Every AI investment requires a formal business case with estimated returns, ensuring that the technology's deployment is tied directly to measurable productivity gains.