Digitalization in Oil & Gas 2026

From Pilots to Production

Why Attend

● Move beyond AI hype and see what is actually scaling across operations, maintenance, field monitoring, and remote facilities.

● Learn how operators are connecting OT, IT, cloud, edge, data platforms, and legacy systems without compromising safety or resilience.

● Hear candid case studies that include implementation hurdles, ROI timelines, governance barriers, and what had to change to make deployments stick.

● Meet operators, digital leaders, robotics and drone specialists, OT and IT architects, AI and data platform providers, and cybersecurity experts.

Agenda at a Glance

● Day 1 focuses on scaled operational value: AI deployment, data foundations, OT–IT integration, governance, and enterprise operationalization.

● Day 2 focuses on robotics, drones, remote operations, digital twins, workforce transformation, and future-proofing the operating model.

Day One: From AI Hype to Scaled Operational Value

Thursday, September 10, 2026
8:00 AM - 8:05 AM
 
Jim Claunch
8:05 AM - 8:35 AM

A strategic view of how digitalization changes workflows, management systems, and the way the business runs.

William Fraizer Baron Unbehagen Jason McMullen Sean McCall
8:35 AM - 8:55 AM

A practical case study on OGI monitoring, drone-based emissions and leak detection, and visual analytics for anomaly identification.

Deirdre Shepherd
8:55 AM - 9:25 AM

Energy companies face growing pressure to move quickly with AI, but success depends on creating frameworks that enable experimentation without sacrificing security, compliance, or operational integrity.

John Carney Charles Kosa Cindy Jones Raghu Guda Christopher Ollison
9:25 AM - 9:55 AM

Operators and practitioners discuss what helped scale high-value use cases, what killed momentum, and how ROI was measured and defended internally.

Habeib Al-Hashimi Maru Williams Sean Ebert Jim Claunch
9:55 AM - 10:25 AM
 
 
10:25 AM - 10:55 AM

Two practical talks examining how the quality of frontline data and the digitalization of field execution determine what organizations can ultimately do with analytics and AI. From fixing the data-quality problems hidden inside existing technology stacks to turning connected-worker activity into structured operational intelligence, this session looks at how better data is created at the source.

10:25 10:35 The Field Data Quality Problem Hiding in Your Tech Stack -- Summer Wilke, Senior Product Manager, GoFormz

10:35 10:55 Connected Worker in Action: How Digital Execution Creates Operational Intelligence -- Andrew Christian, Senior Project Engineer, ATR & Brett Newton, Manager, Training – Manufacturing, Chevron Phillips Chemical

 

Summer Wilke Andrew Christian Brett Newton
10:55 AM - 11:25 AM

Industrial AI is at a crossroads. Many organizations are rich in pilots but poor in scale. We’ve seen it before; every leap forward starts with the foundation beneath it. The Roman roads connected an empire, the U.S. highways connected an economy, and Google Maps created a common lens for how the world navigates. Now, manufacturing is building its next great network: the AI Highway. Discover how Albemarle delivered over $150 Million in annual improvements by building an AI Highway.

Jonathan Alexander
11:25 AM - 11:55 AM

A practical session on secure internal AI platforms, controlled enterprise assistants, model flexibility, and what users actually adopt.

Sonia V. Clayton Joe Wempe Jonathan Alexander Pearl Chu
11:55 AM - 12:25 PM

AI value is rarely determined by technology alone. This session connects compute cost, vendor spend, and model economics with the harder questions of workflow redesign, decision rights, user adoption, and process ownership. It examines what it takes to embed AI into measurable payback.

Konrad Konarski Kyla Spaugh Johnson Sean McCall Brad Nash
12:25 PM - 1:15 PM
 
 
1:15 PM - 1:45 PM

A practical panel on choosing between model types, deployment patterns, hybrid/on-prem/cloud architectures, and how to avoid overbuilding.

Jeff Brock Inder Karir Shuxing Cheng
1:45 PM - 2:15 PM
 
Konrad Konarski Adam Berg Elias Brown
2:15 PM - 2:35 PM
 
 
2:35 PM - 2:55 PM

A case study demonstrating how process automation - often treated as an unavoidable operating expense, can be deliberately transformed into a high-yield investment, particularly as advanced algorithms cannot compensate for weak automation & data foundations.

● Why automation maturity is the primary limiter of AI value in manufacturing

● How standardized, lifecycle‑managed automation creates reusable data, trust, and scalability

● A pragmatic pathway to automation‑driven AI implementation, including operator‑facing AI use cases

Jack Hu
2:55 PM - 3:15 PM

A forward-looking discussion on quantum and high-performance computing, framed realistically for the next few years rather than the distant horizon.

Raj Gautam Jeremy First, PhD
3:15 PM - 3:40 PM

A fast-moving lightning round on responsible AI in operations, semantic data products, fast model upgrades, and safe automation in OT environments:

Topic subject to change

  • 3:15 - 3:30 From Vision to Value: Unlocking Data and AI ROI in Oil and Gas - Shaun Connolly, VP, Strategic Services, Precisely
  • 3:30 - 3:40 Governance, lineage, and auditability for enterprise AI framework-- Omar Omar, Senior Advisor in AI Engineering, Phillips 66


 

Shaun Connolly Omar A Omar
3:40 PM - 4:00 PM

A case study on where digital twins still create value through standardization, simulation, Turnaround P&S, LOTO preparation. Maintenance & Operational training, and emergency preplanning.

Richard Jackson
4:00 PM - 4:10 PM
 
Rob Ratchinsky DJ Kruitbosch
4:10 PM - 4:25 PM
 
Yatharth Sejpal
4:25 PM - 4:40 PM

A curated showcase of deployable technologies. In this showcase, an innovator will practical their solutions built for oil and gas.

You will:

● See a curated showcase of applications designed for real operational environments.

● Hear real-world examples and measurable outcomes aligned with operator priorities

David Benham
4:40 PM - 4:45 PM
 
 
4:45 PM - 5:45 PM
 
 

Day Two: Robotics, Drones, Remote Operations, and Future-Proofing the Operating Model

Friday, September 11, 2026
8:00 AM - 8:05 AM
 
Sean Barnes
8:05 AM - 8:35 AM

A Day 2 opener on portfolio strategy, centers of excellence, standardization, and scaling digitalization across assets and regions.

Sean Barnes Rebecca Hofmann Baron Unbehagen Raj Rapaka
8:35 AM - 9:00 AM

A presentation on avoiding lock-in, building adaptable data foundations, and maintaining flexibility across tools, models, and vendors.

Joe Wempe
9:00 AM - 9:30 AM

A panel on governance boards, auditability, lineage, SAP/SOX realities, risk review and what production-grade AI requires in large industrial companies.

David Crawley Bernardo Braunstein Al Lindseth Prasanna Venkatesh
9:30 AM - 9:50 AM

An overview of deploying Spot to automate data collection, improve asset integrity, and scale digitalized reliability workflows in refining operations

Dan Slowick
9:50 AM - 10:20 AM
 
 
10:20 AM - 10:50 AM

A broad panel on inspection robots, drone-in-a-box systems, ground robots, subsea robotics, and where economics work in real operations.

Peter Dill Jared Markes Ram Seetepalli Merry Frayne, Ph.D.
10:50 AM - 11:10 AM
 
Mahesh Venugopalan Larry Bowden
11:10 AM - 12:00 PM

A session on OT cybersecurity, edge protection, segmented architectures, drones and robotics oversight, and safe deployment in high-consequence environments.

Hani Elshahawi Daniel Bartucci Al Lindseth Brad Nash Hector Perez
12:00 PM - 1:00 PM
 
 
1:00 PM - 1:45 PM

Roundtable leaders will open these highly interactive, peer-driven roundtables with a brief 5-minute introduction and a short overview of the topic, which can include a case study, lessons learned, or an industry update.

Each roundtable covers a different topic, allowing attendees to choose the discussion most relevant to them.

This is followed by a 30-minute peer discussion, with the leader facilitating questions, feedback, and practical exchange. The final 5 minutes are dedicated to aligning on five clear industry recommendations which will be included in the post-conference report.

Choose one topic that aligns with your most urgent priority.

Topic subject to change

  1. Unlocking AI ROI: Why Process Intelligence and Operational Context are the Missing Links - Nick Gosda, Strategic Account Manager, Celonis & Josh Mars, Senior Value Engineer, Celonis
  2. Building an AI-Ready Data Foundation: Governance, Lineage, and Business Ownership - Ram Seetepalli, Director, AI & Digital Solutions, Motiva Enterprise LLC
  3. Trusted Data or Just More Data: The Field Quality Problem Hiding in Your Analytics Stack – Summer Wilke, Senior Product Manager, GoFormz
  4. Agentic AI in Operations: Where Human-in-the-Loop Still Matters Most - Peter Dill, Independent Consultant--Global Procurement and Supply Chain Transformation
  5. Choosing the Right Model, Tool, and Architecture for the Job - Joseph Lamb, Director of Sales, Titan Consulting
  6. Reconciling Innovation Initiatives, Transformation Ambitions, and Change Management – Raj Rapaka, Digital Transformation / Technology Scouting & Ventures Advisor, ExxonMobil / Rebecca Hoffmann, CEO, Blockchain for Energy
  7. Digital Twins After the Hype: Where They Still Deliver Operational Value - Bernardo Braunstein, Head of Global OT Data Management, Noble Cooperation
  8. From Investment to Impact: Extracting Data and AI Value in Oil and Gas -- Shaun Connolly, VP, Strategic Services
  9. Field Smart Technology and Edge Telemetry: Building the Data Capture Layer for Future AI - Walter Egbueze, Environmental Engineer, Third Coast
  10. Operationalizing AI in a Regulated, Asset-Heavy Business: Governance That Enables Rather Than Blocks - Christian Manasseh, CEO, Mobius Logic
  11. Safety, Cybersecurity, and Reliability in More Autonomous Operations Prof. Maria Burns, University of Houston
  12. Workforce 2030: Reskilling, Role Redesign, and Protecting Critical Expertise – Lisa William, Senior Director, Operations Talent Strategy and Employee Experience, Dow
  13. Standardizing Asset Data Across Sites Without Locking Yourself Into One Vendor - Wassil Bouali, Technical Sales Manager, RiConnect
  14. Physical AI in Industry: Connecting Robotics, Sensors, and Decision Systems – Ashley Raimondi, Enterprise Sales Engineering Manager, Boston Dynamics
  15. Future-Proofing the Operating Model: What to Standardize Now for the Next Wave of AI - Andrew Christian, Senior Project Engineer, ATR
  16. How AI is Transforming Materials Management in Asset-Intensive Operations - Christopher Ollison, Associate Partner, Infosys Consulting
  17. Operational Intelligence from Field to Desk: Scaling Local-First Intelligence in Operations -- Taggard Andrew, Solutions Architect
Nick Gosda Ram Seetepalli Summer Wilke Peter Dill Joseph Lamb Raj Rapaka Rebecca Hofmann Bernardo Braunstein Shaun Connolly Walter Egbueze Christian Manasseh Maria Burns Wassil Bouali Ashley Raimondi Andrew Christian Josh Mars Christopher Ollison Taggard Andrews
1:45 PM - 2:05 PM
 
 
2:05 PM - 2:35 PM

Topic subject to change

2:05 2:15 From Isolated Tools to an Intelligent Operating Layer -- Louis Hughes, Director of Industrial Intelligence

2:15 2:35 Enough AI Hype - Tell me what people are really doing -- Robyn Fuentes, President, Improving

Robyn Fuentes
2:35 PM - 3:10 PM

A practical workforce session on retiring expertise, digital twin–based training, end-user programmability, and new role design in a more automated sector.

Sean Barnes Sharon Birkman Lance Duncan
3:10 PM - 3:45 PM

A cross-industry panel on simulation, robotics, AI-first workflows, manufacturing automation, and what is realistically transferable to oil and gas.

Aman Sethi Clark Dressen Michael Mathews
3:45 PM - 3:50 PM