In 2024, BASF invested around two billion euros in research and development, making it one of the most research-intensive companies in the industry. The chemical company consistently focuses its R&D activities on green transformation, sustainable agriculture, and strengthening its own competitiveness. Around 80 percent of its classifiable activities support the company's sustainability goals. Digital tools and artificial intelligence are increasingly helping to make processes more productive and bring new innovations to market faster. More than 15 percent of sales come from products developed within the last five years.
“Innovation has always been part of BASF’s DNA. Especially in these volatile times, it is crucial to leverage our innovative strength to develop competitive solutions that differentiate us as a company in our markets and give us a competitive edge,“ says Dr. Stephan Kothrade, member of the BASF Board of Executive Directors and Chief Technology Officer. He also emphasizes: “Through continuous improvements in the energy and resource efficiency of our plants, we not only secure cost leadership in many value chains but also make our products more sustainable.”
BASF relies on digitalization and AI in research and development
AI-supported information systems such as the “QKnows” knowledge platform make it much easier to search scientific databases. “That shows our strong commitment to the green transformation,” explains Dr. Christoph Wegner, President of Group Research. BASF's first AI reactor also shows how digital methods are accelerating chemistry: It plans and analyzes experiments independently. This is done 20 times faster than manual processes. Another example is an AI model that evaluates in early research phases whether pesticides could potentially enter the groundwater. This is based on around one million simulations in BASF's Quriosity supercomputer.
Innovation for a functioning circular economy
A practical example of sustainable innovation is “Loopamid,” a process for textile-based polyamide recycling. More than 120 million tons of textile waste are generated worldwide every year, but less than one percent is recycled. The Loopamid process enables the recovery of high-quality polyamide fibers from old textiles and reduces CO2 emissions by up to 70 percent. BASF commissioned the first commercial Loopamid plant at its Caojing site in Shanghai in 2025. The plant has an annual capacity of 500 tons. It is certified according to the Global Recycled Standard and meets strict environmental and social criteria.
BASF breaks new ground in competitive hydrogen
Hydrogen is an essential raw material for many chemical processes. BASF is working on scaling up methane pyrolysis as a new process that requires significantly less energy than water electrolysis. In addition, no CO2 emissions are generated when renewable energy is used. Together with Exxon Mobil, the further development of the technology is being driven forward to enable future commercial use. BASF has been operating a test plant in Ludwigshafen since 2021 that uses a particularly efficient reactor. The planned demonstration plant is expected to produce up to 2,000 tons of hydrogen and 6,000 tons of solid carbon annually.
3D-printed catalysts for more efficient processes
With the “X3D” process, BASF is introducing a new technology to industrial catalyst production. 3D printing creates geometrically optimized structures that reduce the pressure drop in the reactor and lower energy requirements. At the same time, the efficiency of the catalyst is improved. The new technology enables the production of catalysts on an industrial scale and can be adapted to different materials. Due to high demand, BASF is building a new production plant in Ludwigshafen in Germany, which is scheduled to go into operation in 2026.
