Scaling AI in energy operations at ADIPEC 2026

The global energy landscape is undergoing a profound transformation, moving rapidly from digital experimentation towards the enterprise-scale deployment of artificial intelligence.

Driving this shift is an urgent need to strengthen productivity, bolster cyber resilience, and ensure long-term security in a data-hungry world. This transition was the central focus on the third day of ADIPEC 2026 in Abu Dhabi, where technology leaders mapped out the definitive path for industrial AI adoption.

Building an AI-ready energy system

Realising the full potential of machine learning depends on robust data foundations and updated operating models. Helmut von Struve, CEO, Siemens UAE & Middle East, outlined the objective: "The greatest value from an AI perspective is where industries, and also the essential services we depend on, can be improved. It is really about how we can make essential operations more productive and reliable, and how we can make them more resource-efficient."

This requires significant cross-sector collaboration. Discussing this convergence, John Gilley, CEO, Kent, stated: "We are seeing that it is not just about energy; it is about connecting the world's appetite for data with the world's appetite for energy. Each country wants to have control of its own data and energy."

Addressing workforce anxieties regarding intelligent systems, Ashish Koshy, CEO, Inception42, firmly argued: "It has to be not AI versus humans, but humans augmented by AI."

Sovereignty, security and community inclusion

As digital infrastructure merges with critical energy assets, data ownership has become paramount. Dennis Jol, CEO, AIQ, highlighted how essential this foundation is for progress: "Collaboration moves at the speed of trust. If we look at the UAE ecosystem, it is a five-layer cake: energy, data, infrastructure, sovereign cloud and the models we have access to, which maintain security. We sit on top of that. Ultimately, data has to belong to the customer, and customers have to trust us. Cybersecurity rules need to be enhanced. Sovereignty does not need to be national; it just needs to exist within your own framework."

Simultaneously, expanding physical computing infrastructure faces public scrutiny. Joseph McMonigle, President, Global Center for Energy Analysis, stressed the importance of community engagement: "I do not think it is going to be possible to avoid moving forward with AI and digital computing, but the industry needs to be much more effective and change its strategy. It needs to pay more attention to the local level. There needs to be some kind of inclusion.”

Attracting capital for complex infrastructure

Deploying these digital solutions at scale requires massive private investment. Tarek El Molla, Founder & Principal Consultant, Luminant Energy Consultancy, and former Minister of Petroleum & Mineral Resources Egypt, detailed the financial hurdles: "Unless governments are more tolerant and open, and offer more incentives for the use of infrastructure, helping secure buy-in from the private sector and multinationals, these projects will not succeed in attracting investment. This is not investment that is easily raised. Therefore, I think that in the coming years, policies will become more relaxed, inviting more private-sector capital."

This shift in perspective is gradually gaining traction among global investors. Ambassador Martina Strong, Region President, Central Europe and the Middle East, Bechtel, confirmed: "Markets are already looking at the proposition of investing in large, complex infrastructure very differently from how they did, certainly in this part of the world."

Real-world operational deployment

The expanded AI Zone provided practical demonstrations of this industrial shift. Instead of isolated concepts, companies showcased intelligent tools embedded directly into the energy value chain:

• Stone Ridge Technology introduced a pioneering AI-native orchestration layer for its ECHELON simulation software, accelerating subsurface reservoir management.

• Honeywell presented its Forge Upstream platform, allowing operators to utilise advanced analytics for fully autonomous upstream operations.

• EY and Gecko Robotics demonstrated robots that climb, crawl, swim, and fly to inspect critical pipelines, predicting equipment failures.

• Sinaha exhibited Autonomous Mobile Robots coordinated via a proprietary system, with UAE-based manufacturing commencing in 2027.