Abu Dhabi National Oil Company (ADNOC) has announced a partnership with OpenAI to introduce advanced artificial intelligence technology into its operations, becoming the world’s first energy company to deploy OpenAI’s Frontier platform.
The agreement was announced on Monday as OpenAI Chief Executive Officer Sam Altman attended the UAE’s flagship oil industry event in Abu Dhabi. The partnership reflects the Gulf state’s growing investment in artificial intelligence as it seeks to diversify its economy beyond the energy sector.
Under the agreement, ADNOC and OpenAI will also work with Emirati artificial intelligence company G42 to integrate advanced AI systems into the oil giant’s operations.
ADNOC said OpenAI’s models would allow the company to assess the value of oil reserves while they remain underground, using advanced data analysis and reasoning capabilities.
The company said the technology would bring together decades of information from thousands of wells, multiple reservoirs and hundreds of surface facilities, alongside financial, commercial and operational data, to develop and optimise field-wide plans.
The partnership will also involve interconnected AI agents designed to continuously forecast crude oil supply, demand, prices and profit margins. These systems will assess potential impacts in advance and evaluate the commercial and operational consequences of decisions through an integrated process.
Speaking at the ADIPEC oil conference, ADNOC Managing Director and Chief Executive Sultan Al Jaber said the partnership would explore how artificial intelligence could transform the energy industry.
Altman praised the UAE for its approach to adopting artificial intelligence, describing it as one of the world’s most forward-looking countries in the field.
No financial details of the agreement were disclosed.
The UAE has accelerated its artificial intelligence ambitions since 2017, when it appointed the world’s first minister for AI and introduced a national artificial intelligence strategy. G42 was established a year later with backing from Abu Dhabi-based sovereign wealth fund Mubadala. The company is chaired by Sheikh Tahnoon bin Zayed Al Nahyan, the UAE president’s brother, and employs more than 23,000 people.
The announcement comes amid wider efforts by Gulf energy companies to expand their investments in artificial intelligence. On Sunday, Saudi state-owned oil giant Aramco announced that it would acquire a 49 per cent stake in Humain, a Saudi-backed AI company.
Aramco plans to invest around 9.9 billion Saudi riyals ($2.6 billion) in Humain this year through cash, artificial intelligence, computing and digital assets as the company seeks to expand its operations and meet growing demand.
