ABU DHABI (ALETIHAD)
Chief executives and technology leaders from major global companies, including Siemens AG, Honeywell, AVEVA, Cognite, Siemens Energy, Schneider Electric and AIQ, will participate in ADIPEC 2026 in Abu Dhabi next month, with artificial intelligence (AI) and its growing role in energy operations taking centre stage, according to a statement issued by ADIPEC.
The event, scheduled for November 2-5, will bring together technology companies, energy operators, investors and policymakers to examine the deployment of AI across energy infrastructure and industrial operations, the statement said.
The discussions will focus on improving operational efficiency, strengthening energy infrastructure and addressing the growing electricity demand from AI applications and data centres.
Citing estimates from the International Energy Agency (IEA), the ADIPEC statement said widespread adoption of existing AI applications could generate annual savings of up to $110 billion in power generation by 2035 and unlock as much as 175 gigawatts of additional transmission capacity from existing power lines.
At the same time, the rapid expansion of AI and data centres is increasing demand for electricity, creating a closer relationship between the energy and technology sectors, the statement noted.
AI will be a central theme across ADIPEC's Strategic and Technical Conferences, exhibition and Leadership Roundtables. Discussions will cover upstream productivity, industrial automation, grid resilience, cybersecurity, predictive analytics and the investment required to deploy AI technologies on a larger scale.
According to the statement, confirmed speakers include Roland Busch, President and CEO of Siemens AG; Caspar Herzberg, CEO of AVEVA; Dr Christian Bruch, President and CEO of Siemens Energy; Girish Rishi, CEO of Cognite; Vimal Kapur, Chairman and CEO of Honeywell; Dennis Jol, CEO of AIQ; Olivier Blum, CEO of Schneider Electric; and Jack Hidary, CEO of SandboxAQ.
Other speakers include Uljan Sharka, Founder and CEO of Domyn; Dr Olivier Oullier, CEO of Inclusive Brains; and Tim Bawtree, Chairman and Founder of Quantum Switch.
Roland Busch, President and CEO of Siemens AG, said the effective deployment of industrial AI requires its integration into essential infrastructure, including electricity grids, industrial systems and buildings.
“Industrial AI delivers the most value for energy systems when intelligence is engineered into infrastructure at its core, including the grids, industrial systems and buildings that keep economies running day to day,” Busch said in comments carried by the statement.
He noted that these systems must operate reliably under pressure, regardless of whether they were built decades ago or are currently under construction.
“Scaling that requires sustained investment, deep engineering expertise and closer collaboration between the energy and technology sectors. ADIPEC brings those partnerships together, turning technological progress into resilient, real-world performance,” he added.
Christopher Hudson, President of dmg events, the organiser of ADIPEC, said the energy industry must identify commercially viable AI applications and develop the capabilities required to implement them securely.
“AI is opening up significant opportunities for the energy industry. The priority now is identifying which applications are worth backing and how to deploy them securely at scale,” Hudson said.
“That takes more than technology; it requires engineering expertise, investment and commercial discipline. ADIPEC connects the people setting strategy and committing capital with those responsible for delivery, helping turn AI's potential into measurable improvements across energy systems,” he added.
The growing importance of AI is also reflected in submissions to ADIPEC's Technical Conferences. The statement said the conferences received a record 7,261 abstract submissions this year, with AI and Digital Transformation accounting for 1,296, the highest among all technical categories.
More than 200 technical sessions featuring 1,100 expert speakers will examine engineering innovations, operational improvements and technology adoption across the energy sector.
The exhibition will feature an expanded AI Zone, co-hosted by AIQ, where companies will demonstrate applications of AI, robotics and digital technologies in reservoir modelling, autonomous control, infrastructure inspection, grid management and subsea robotics.
ADIPEC 2026 is expected to welcome 239,000 attendees, more than 2,250 exhibiting companies and over 1,800 speakers across 13 conference programmes.