GlobalData Flags Aramco AI Dominance

Saudi Aramco’s artificial intelligence (AI) innovation dominance places the company ahead of the curve.

That’s what GlobalData noted in a release sent to Rigzone this week, which included an AI innovation leadership map for Aramco. According to that map, Aramco is a leader in a variety of themes, including oil exploration AI, drone controls AI, fault monitoring AI, and underwater robots.

The company is also an “explorer” of themes such as intelligent predictive maintenance, explainable AI, and ensemble learning, and a “challenger” of themes including welding robots, image smoothing, and defect detection models, the map shows.

GlobalData highlighted in the release that its Technology Foresights platform identified over 250 areas of innovation involving Aramco, “spanning technologies poised to disrupt the oil and gas sector, such as AI, drones, robotics, electric vehicles (EVs), and hydrogen technology”.

Additionally, Aramco has internally developed cybersecurity capabilities to safeguard against cyber threats encountered in recent years, GlobalData pointed out in the release.

“The oil and gas industry is confronted with an array of disruptive challenges, which stem from rising energy demands, frequent threats to the supply chain, geopolitical tensions, and the transition to alternative and sustainable fuel sources,” GlobalData noted in the release.

“In response to these pressures, there is a compelling need to fervently embrace innovation. Leading this charge is Saudi Aramco, the world’s largest oil production company,” it added.

“Aramco is spearheading the innovations by embracing cutting-edge technologies like artificial intelligence, both within its core operations and beyond, which places the company ahead of the curve,” it continued.

In the release, GlobalData said Aramco has significantly invested in research and development compared to its industry peers, “allocating approximately $3.5 billion in 2023, representing a 15 percent annual increase despite global challenges”.

“This investment is reflected in its innovative efforts, which extend beyond its primary operations,” GlobalData added.

Sourabh Nyalkalkar, Practice Head of Innovation Products at GlobalData, said in the release, “Technology Foresights throws light on Aramco’s AI innovation strategy”.

“The innovation leadership map reveals how the company is employing AI in its core operations and selectively prioritizing the adoption of AI innovations in specific areas of its business. For instance, utilizing AI for oil exploration and underwater operations is a significant strategic focus where the company clearly holds a strong leadership position,” Nyalkalkar added.

“A recently published patent application clearly demonstrates this usage, describing the deployment of drones in sub-surface terrain to capture images. These images are then analyzed using machine learning (ML) algorithms to detect oil spills and pollutants,” the GlobalData representative continued.

“Another application showcases the use of AI/ML for automating seismic data processing and providing real-time updates for sub-surface reservoir models,” Nyalkalkar went on to state.

GlobalData also stated in the release that Aramco is expanding its innovation initiatives beyond patents. In late 2023, the company launched a digital innovation ecosystem named Saudi Accelerated Innovation Laboratory (SAIL), GlobalData highlighted, adding that its goal is to engage with a broader ecosystem, including government organizations and startups, to foster the development of digital innovation products.

In March 2024, the company introduced its own LLM through SAIL, GlobalData highlighted. Known as Aramco METABRAIN, the generative AI model is trained on data accumulated by the company over the past 90 years, GlobalData noted.

“Aramco is also betting on futuristic technologies,” Nyalkalkar said in the release.

“The company is closely monitoring the startup ecosystem and has in the recent past invested in several companies such as Pragmatic, which develops flexible semiconductor chips, and Sunrate, a fintech company,” the GlobalData representative added.

“From the perspective of industry watchers and stakeholders, Saudi Aramco’s initiatives in adopting cutting-edge technologies, particularly AI, provide valuable insights into strategic navigation within a disruptive environment,” Nyalkalkar continued.

“For startups and other vendors developing industry-specific solutions, the insights gained from the in-depth innovation analysis of Aramco and its peers can assist in prioritizing areas that can enhance the value proposition,” Nyakalkar went on to state.

In an artificial intelligence overview section on its website, GlobalData states that, within five years, the deployment of AI will be essential to the survival of companies of all shapes and size across all sectors. The site notes that AI refers to software-based systems that use data inputs to make decisions on their own or that help users make decisions.

On its website, Aramco states that it harnesses the power of AI, Big Data, and the Industrial Internet of Things to optimize many aspects of its operations and to achieve a variety of goals. 

“AI is a key tool in the company’s Digital Transformation program, and we continue to design, develop and deploy innovative smart tools, and other digital solutions, in order to analyze and improve our decision-making processes, and to boost business performance,” Aramco’s site notes.

“By taking full advantage of the benefits of AI and Big Data, we aim to stay at the forefront of supplying the world’s growing demand for reliable, affordable, lower-carbon energy,” it adds.

“AI and Big Data solutions can optimize a wide variety of operations within the energy sector to deliver improved efficiency, reliability, and sustainability. At Aramco, we have set ourselves the goal of becoming the leading digitalized energy company and the rapidly developing world of industrial AI is key to achieving this goal,” the company’s site goes on to state.

A release sent to Rigzone by GlobalData earlier this year outlined AI as one of the biggest themes driving growth in the oil and gas industry in 2024.

To contact the author, email andreas.exarheas@rigzone.com