GEG sharpens AI adoption, eyes robots with ₹1,200 cr Amethyst project

Mumbai-based conglomerate to deploy AI agents and intelligent robots across 14 business units over three years

Godrej Enterprises Group (GEG), the Mumbai-based appliances-to-aerospace conglomerate, plans to build intelligent robots tailored for industrial applications as it sharpens its focus on artificial intelligence (AI) with a substantial ₹1,200 crore investment over the next three years under Project Amethyst. The initiative aims to deploy AI agents across its 14 business units spanning appliances, process equipment, precision engineering, and aerospace.

 

"The vision for Amethyst is to get into robotics as well in terms of automation,” said Vijay Balakrishnan, GEG's chief digital and information officer, in an interview with Business Standard.

 

“We have robotics cells within every division which focus on robotics-based automation in our factories. These are uni-skilled robots, for example, a robot that focuses on laser cutting or welding, purchased for a very specific function. Today, the rich commodity is intelligence. I can purchase a robot or a drone, but what does the drone do for me? What does it see in my factories? How does it understand what it sees and how does it know what to report or fix? That part is the goldmine and that is what we are building into Amethyst,” he explained.

 

The group employs about 12,000 people across companies, including the flagship Godrej & Boyce, Godrej Holdings, and international subsidiaries. In January this year, the group announced its ambition to incorporate AI under Amethyst.

 

Asked whether AI in automation will lead to layoffs or reduced manpower at the group, the senior executive said: "Our businesses are growing and scaling up every year. Instead of increasing headcount proportionally, we may be able to handle twice the output with the same workforce."

 

Balakrishnan added that preparation was underway for 600,000 hours of AI training across levels planned over next 12 months, which will equip GEG’s workforce to amplify output without additional hiring.

 

The group is adopting implementation of AI across businesses, customised at varying maturity levels, ranging from design and supply chain optimisations in consumer-facing segments to contract-handling in industrial projects.

 

GEG is adopting a “pilot-to-value” strategy where it is building minimum viable products (MVPs) that can be scaled. For instance, the group is using agentic AI to automate labour-intensive business-to-business order-booking processes that are common across group companies.

 

"It used to take about 7-14 days, and we have brought it down to one hour," Balakrishnan said.

 

The group has also built a multi-agent "Contract Analyser" comprising six specialised agents that segregate documents into engineering, purchasing, legal, and other norms, which it uses for managing cumbersome customer contracts. The agent, Balakrishnan explained, scrutinises proposals for omissions, automates cost estimations tied to pricing, availability, and resources, and advances design automation for specific requirements. He added that the model can be implemented across global markets.