Verified
Occidental Petroleum
Piloting- Oil and gas
- 10,412 employees (2025)
- AI runs 54% of U.S. onshore lift wells
- 14 AI projects deployed (2025)
- AI built in-house
Occidental Petroleum deploys AI mostly in its oilfields: AI runs artificial lift on about 7,100 U.S. onshore wells, models steer drilling and completion design, agents screen wells and draft engineering procedures, and remote centers monitor the Permian, Rockies and Gulf of America. Chief of AI Patrick Bangert and an AI Center of Excellence build the tools in-house, and AWS has been Occidental's preferred cloud since 2023. Occidental reports AI returns only from production gains in artificial lift, and names no model provider and no employee-wide AI assistant.
oxy.comTheir approach to AI
- The platform
- Occidental builds its AI applications in-house: it set up an AI Center of Excellence by Feb 2025 to align AI work across the company, with focused teams for operations, the Gulf of America, and logistics and supply chain (Aug 2025).
- The models
- Occidental runs its own machine learning, including neural networks for drilling analytics, a multivariate model built on more than 5,000 wells, and agents for production engineering (Sep 2026); it names no model provider, and AWS has been its preferred cloud since Jul 2023.
- The reach
- AI surveils 68% of Occidental's U.S. Onshore artificial lift wells, about 9,000, and runs 54%, about 7,100, on its own (Sep 2026); employee use of AI tools across its 10,412 staff is not disclosed.
- The catch
- Occidental reports AI returns only in artificial lift, where AI plunger and gas lift optimization raise production; its 2026 drilling and completion savings were full-year figures given before the year closed, and it publishes no firm-level AI return, no AI budget and no count of employees using AI tools.
Snapshot
- Employees
- 10,412
- Dec 31, 2025, continuing operations; 6,793 in North America and 3,441 in the Middle East (2025 Form 10-K)
- Technology budget
- Not disclosed
- Occidental publishes no IT or AI budget; 2025 capital expenditures were about $6.4B
- AI/ML headcount
- Not disclosed
- AI Center of Excellence by Feb 2025; focused AI teams in operations, the Gulf of America and supply chain (Aug 2025); AI teams in Operations Technology and Occidental Oman
- Who owns AI
- Patrick Bangert, VP and Chief of AI
- CIO Yanni Charalambous runs IT, data management and advanced analytics and reports to the CEO
- Platform
- In-house AI applications
- AWS has been the preferred cloud since Jul 2023; no named employee AI platform disclosed
- Models
- In-house machine learning and agents
- Mostly machine learning and computer vision rather than large language models, per CXOTalk; neural networks and multivariate models trained on well data (Sep 2026)
- Reach
- ~7,100 wells run by AI
- 54% of U.S. Onshore artificial lift wells (Sep 2026); employee usage not disclosed
- Use cases
- 20 AI projects (2025)
- 14 deployed, 4 in pilot and 2 in development at the end of 2025; CXOTalk put the Chief of AI's portfolio at 200+ use cases (Sep 2026)
Key findings
Occidental said in Sep 2026 that AI operates 54% of its U.S. Onshore artificial lift wells on its own, about 7,100 wells, with 68%, about 9,000, under AI surveillance, and that it expects more than 90% autonomous surveillance and operation by 2030.
Occidental's Mar 2026 proxy statement says the company developed 20 AI projects in 2025, each estimated at $10 million to $90 million of annual benefit, and had deployed 14 of them by year-end; Occidental gives no total, and an AI deployment goal in the 2025 executive bonus scored above target.
Occidental's reported AI returns come from U.S. Onshore artificial lift: AI plunger lift optimization adds 2,500 barrels of oil equivalent a day of annual production and AI gas lift optimization a 3% annual uplift (Sep 2026). Occidental put 2026 well cost savings from its Delaware Basin drilling and completion AI, now rolling out across its operations, at more than $50 million, a full-year figure given in Sep 2026 before the year closed.
Occidental created an AI Center of Excellence by Feb 2025 to align AI initiatives across the company, lists Patrick Bangert as Vice President and Chief of AI, and has CIO Yanni Charalambous, who runs IT, data management and advanced analytics, report directly to the CEO; AWS has been Occidental's preferred cloud since Jul 2023.
Richard Jackson, the chief operating officer who ran the operations where Occidental's AI is deployed, succeeded Vicki Hollub as CEO on Jun 1, 2026; Jackson said in May 2026 that AI is taking a larger role across all disciplines at Occidental, which set a 10% workforce efficiency milestone for 2030 in Aug 2026.
Where Occidental sits
- Stage
- Piloting
Occidental Petroleum has reported business returns it credits to AI in one function, U.S. Onshore artificial lift: its Sep 2026 Advanced Recovery presentation says AI plunger lift optimization adds 2,500 barrels of oil equivalent a day of annual production and AI gas lift optimization delivers a 3% annual production uplift. Occidental's other AI figures are estimates: more than $50 million of 2026 well cost savings from Delaware Basin drilling and completion AI and an estimated 4,000 barrels a day from New Mexico AI field operations were full-year 2026 figures given in Sep 2026, before the year closed, and the Mar 2026 proxy statement puts each of the 20 AI projects developed in 2025 at $10 million to $90 million of estimated annual benefit, with no total. On rollout, Occidental has not reported how many of its 10,412 employees use AI tools; AI runs about 7,100 U.S. Onshore artificial lift wells, Vice President and Chief of AI Patrick Bangert leads the Applied AI Center of Excellence, and the 2025 executive bonus carried an AI deployment goal. Occidental Petroleum is therefore at Piloting; it falls short of Scaling because its reported AI returns sit in artificial lift alone, it credits no realized firm-level figure to AI, and it has no company-wide AI platform whose owner reports results.
How the stages are defined - Ownership
- VP and Chief of AI Patrick Bangert and an AI Center of Excellence; the CIO reports to the CEO
- Platform
- Hybrid: AI applications built in-house; AWS cloud and SensorUp emissions platform bought
- Models
- In-house machine learning, computer vision and agents; no model provider named
- Hosting
- AWS, Occidental's preferred cloud since Jul 2023; where the AI models run is not disclosed
- Reach
- AI runs 7,100 onshore wells (Sep 2026); employee use not disclosed
How they deploy
AI for the subsurface and the field
Occidental points AI at its core oil and gas work instead of office tasks. Vicki Hollub said in Aug 2025 that AI was already helping with the subsurface in the Permian and other U.S. onshore areas and with operational efficiency, and that the complex deepwater subsurface of the Gulf of America is where AI will be most applicable. Occidental lists AI with CO2, power and water as the integrated technologies it applies across operations (Aug 2026).
Built by in-house teams
Occidental builds its AI capabilities internally. Vicki Hollub said in Feb 2025 that Occidental had created an AI Center of Excellence to align all AI initiatives across the company and speed business value, and in Aug 2025 that focused teams work on operations, on the Gulf of America, and on logistics and supply chain. Occidental's 2025 AI reservoir characterization tools were built into its traditional geoscience platforms (Mar 2026 proxy statement). CXOTalk said in Sep 2026 that Chief of AI Patrick Bangert leads Occidental's Applied AI Center of Excellence and that most of its projects are built on machine learning and computer vision rather than large language models.
Tied to the 2030 cash flow plan
Occidental expects about $4 billion more in annual sustainable cash flow by 2030 than in 2025, and AI sits inside the milestones: a 12% cut in U.S. Onshore new well costs, a 10% cut in domestic lease operating and transportation costs, and a 10% improvement in workforce efficiency. Occidental says development efficiencies and AI integration are expected to make the 12% well cost reduction possible (Sep 2026).
Autonomy and agents in operations
Occidental is moving routine field decisions to software. AI adjusts artificial lift setpoints on about 7,100 U.S. Onshore wells without people, agents screen well data and draft engineering procedures in New Mexico's Delaware Basin, and Occidental plans more than 90% autonomous surveillance and operation of artificial lift by 2030, with each system described as scalable to global operations (Sep 2026).
Proprietary by default
Vicki Hollub said in Nov 2023 that Occidental considers its technical work proprietary and had already disclosed enough to let others follow it. Occidental publishes AI results project by project in investor materials and names no AI model provider.
- Deployment model
- Occidental runs AI through a central AI Center of Excellence, created by Feb 2025, and focused AI teams placed in operations, the Gulf of America, and logistics and supply chain, while CIO Yanni Charalambous runs IT, cybersecurity, operations technology, data management and advanced analytics and reports directly to the CEO. Field AI runs through remote operations command centers in the Permian and Rockies and, since the fourth quarter of 2025, the Gulf of America, which together cover about 40% of U.S. production as routeless operations. Occidental proves tools in one basin and then extends them: the Delaware Basin drilling and completion AI initiative is now rolling out across Occidental's operations (Sep 2026).
- Model providers
- Occidental has not named any model provider. Occidental's disclosed AI is mostly its own machine learning on operating data: neural-network predictive analytics for drilling, a multivariate analysis model built on more than 5,000 wells and over 200 parameters for completion design, AI that tunes plunger, gas lift and rod pump wells, and agents that screen wells, draft procedures and run root cause analysis (Sep 2026). CXOTalk said in Sep 2026 that most of Occidental's AI projects are built on machine learning and computer vision rather than large language models, with uses running from cameras in the field to enterprise search. Occidental's Board reviewed existing uses of AI and potential generative AI opportunities in data analytics at its 2025 strategic planning meeting, and Occidental has not said whether employees have a generative AI assistant.
- Data and infrastructure
- Occidental feeds its AI with field and subsurface data: real-time drilling data from all Delaware Basin rigs and one Gulf of America drillship, about 50,000 rod pump dynamometer cards read and classified each day, 43 connected gas lift networks controlling about 450,000 barrels of oil equivalent a day, and seismic surveys that Vicki Hollub said provide a rich dataset for AI, including Algeria's largest seismic acquisition (Feb 2025). Occidental chose AWS as its preferred cloud provider in Jul 2023, under a multiyear agreement to move its core production applications, analytics tools and on-premises IT infrastructure to AWS and to manage its data lakes with AWS Lake Formation; Occidental has not said whether its AI models run on AWS or in its own data centers. Occidental's 2025 Form 10-K says third-party cloud and other providers host some of its systems, data and proprietary information. Occidental aggregates methane and emissions data in the SensorUp platform (2026 Sustainability Report).
Platforms and internal tools
AI artificial lift automation2021 (plunger lift)
Occidental's AI artificial lift system watches well pressures and flow behavior and adjusts plunger lift, gas lift and rod pump wells on its own, around the clock. Occidental began building PLAI, a closed-loop plunger lift AI, in 2021 (Apr 2026 Southwestern Petroleum Short Course paper), and its Rockies team had integrated AI into plunger lift by May 2023; by Sep 2026 the system surveilled about 9,000 U.S. Onshore wells and ran about 7,100 autonomously, work Occidental equates to about 1 million workhours a year.
- Users
- About 7,100 wells run autonomously (Sep 2026)
- Models
- In-house AI
Remote operations command centersGulf of America center, Q4 2025
Occidental's remote operations command centers in the Permian, Rockies and Gulf of America use AI and remote monitoring to diagnose field issues before a person is sent, covering about 40% of U.S. production as routeless operations. Richard Jackson said the Rockies center resolved about 300 issues a day remotely during a winter storm (Feb 2026).
Delaware Basin drilling and completion AIBy 2026
Occidental's drilling and completion AI covers integrated well design with agentic review of offset wells, real-time drilling analytics across all Delaware Basin rigs and one Gulf of America drillship, and completion design models built on more than 5,000 wells; Occidental is extending it from the Delaware Basin to its other operations (Sep 2026).
- Models
- Neural networks and multivariate analysis models
Agentic production assistantsBy Sep 2026
Occidental's agentic production assistants in New Mexico's Delaware Basin review well data across thousands of wells, find candidates for performance work, prepare engineering procedures for production engineers to review and approve, and then route the work across teams.
AI reservoir characterization tools2025
Occidental developed several AI tools for reservoir characterization in 2025 and built them into its traditional geoscience platforms; blind tests against actual well results confirmed better predictions, according to the Mar 2026 proxy statement.
COACHBy Sep 2026
COACH is an AI assistant that Occidental uses in Gulf of America operations to improve the quality of safety observations.
Vendors and partners
SensorUp
Emissions data integration and digital measurement, reporting and verification platform · Occidental uses SensorUp to aggregate methane detection data from fixed sensors, drones, aircraft and satellites and to automate Colorado greenhouse gas intensity reporting (2026 Sustainability Report).
Amazon Web Services (AWS)Jul 2023
Preferred cloud provider: core production applications, on-premises IT infrastructure, analytics tools and data lakes · AWS announced the multiyear agreement on Jul 27, 2023, saying AWS analytics and machine learning would help Occidental automate processes and that Occidental would manage its data lakes with AWS Lake Formation. Occidental has not said whether its AI models run on AWS.
Leadership
AI, data and platform leaders
Executives
Board
AI org map
AI Center of Excellence and a Chief of AI building in-house tools; CIO reports to the CEO
Occidental created an AI Center of Excellence by Feb 2025 to align AI initiatives across the company, and lists Patrick Bangert as Vice President and Chief of AI; CXOTalk said in Sep 2026 that Bangert leads the Applied AI Center of Excellence. CIO Yanni Charalambous, who runs IT, cybersecurity, operations technology, data management and advanced analytics, reports directly to the President and CEO, Richard Jackson since Jun 1, 2026. Focused AI teams work inside operations, the Gulf of America, and logistics and supply chain (Aug 2025), and Occidental also has an AI development team in Operations Technology and an AI team at Occidental Oman.
Occidental has not disclosed how many people work on AI. Occidental's AI work sits in an AI Center of Excellence created by Feb 2025 to align AI initiatives across the company, which CXOTalk said in Sep 2026 is led by Patrick Bangert, Vice President and Chief of AI, and runs more than 200 use cases; in focused AI teams for operations, the Gulf of America, and logistics and supply chain (Aug 2025); in an AI development team in Operations Technology and an AI team at Occidental Oman; and in IT under CIO Yanni Charalambous, whose remit includes data management and advanced analytics. Occidental had 10,412 employees in continuing operations at the end of 2025.
Reporting lines
President and CEO
Information Technology
Yanni Charalambous, VP and CIO
IT, cybersecurity, operations technology, data management and advanced analytics; reports directly to the CEO (2025 Form 10-K)
AI development, Operations Technology
Alexander Lach, AI Development Manager
The CIO's remit includes operations technology, so the line to IT is inferred, not published
U.S. Onshore operations
Runs the AI artificial lift, remote operations and Delaware Basin drilling AI; no leader is listed on the leadership page (Nov 2026), and the line to the CEO is inferred
International Oil and Gas Operations
Kenneth Dillon, SVP and President
Middle East, North Africa, South America, Gulf of America and major projects; line to the CEO inferred, not published
Subsurface Technology
Jeff Simmons, SVP and Chief Petrotechnical Officer
The 2025 Form 10-K says the Chief Petrotechnical Officer reports to the COO; no COO is listed since Richard Jackson became CEO, so the current line is inferred
Finance
Sunil Mathew, SVP and CFO
Line to the CEO inferred, not published
Applied AI Center of Excellence
Patrick Bangert, VP and Chief of AI
Created by Feb 2025 to align AI initiatives across Occidental; CXOTalk names Bangert as its leader (Sep 2026); reporting line not published
AI team, Occidental Oman
Fahd Saghir, Director of Artificial Intelligence
Reporting line not published
Occidental publishes no org chart. The 2025 Form 10-K and the Mar 2026 proxy statement say the CIO reports directly to the President and CEO, and the 10-K says the Chief Petrotechnical Officer reports to the COO, a role Richard Jackson held until Jun 1, 2026. Occidental's leadership page, checked Nov 1, 2026, lists no COO and no Chief of AI, and Occidental has not said whether its Oman and Operations Technology AI teams report to the Chief of AI.
Named people
Use cases
Occidental Petroleum developed 20 AI projects in 2025, each estimated at $10 million to $90 million of annual benefit, and had deployed 14 of them by year-end, with four in pilot and two in development; CXOTalk put the Chief of AI's portfolio at more than 200 use cases in Sep 2026. Occidental Petroleum has reported a return it credits to AI for two use cases, both in U.S. Onshore artificial lift: AI plunger lift optimization (2,500 boe/d of annual production uplift) and AI gas lift optimization (a 3% annual production uplift), both in Sep 2026. Occidental's Sep 2026 figures for drilling, completion and New Mexico field operations AI, more than $50 million of 2026 well cost savings and an estimated 4,000 boe/d of 2026 production, were full-year figures given before the year closed. Occidental gives no firm-level AI return and does not separate AI from other drivers of its lower operating costs.
| Use case | Area | Status | ROI |
|---|---|---|---|
| Plunger lift optimization AI monitors well pressures, flow behavior and plunger performance and changes setpoints automatically, making 100 times more setpoint changes than people, removing manual interventions and eliminating about 120,000 BOE of downtime a year; Occidental put implementation at 80% in Sep 2026. Occidental engineers wrote in Apr 2026 that PLAI, the closed-loop plunger lift AI begun in 2021, went to 700 more wells within three months of a year of trials on up to 300 and is now Occidental's main way of managing plunger lift wells. | U.S. Onshore operations | In production | 2,500 boe/d annual production uplift, credited to AI plunger optimization (Sep 2026) |
| Gas lift optimization network AI adjusts gas injection every minute for all wells on centralized compression, managing 2.5 Bcf a day of injected gas across 43 connected networks that control about 450,000 boe/d of net production, with 99% fewer manual interventions; implementation stood at 60% in Sep 2026. | U.S. Onshore operations | In production | 3% annual production uplift from AI gas lift optimization (Sep 2026) |
| Rod pump optimization AI tunes rod pumps 30 times faster than manual adjustment, watches them around the clock, reads and classifies 50,000 dynamometer cards a day, cut daily on/off cycles by 30% and restarts 25% of well alarms safely without intervention; implementation stood at 80% in Sep 2026. | U.S. Onshore operations | In production | |
| AI field operations and agentic production assistants, New Mexico Delaware Basin AI inspects wells remotely, ranks work and routes field staff to problems, while agents screen data across thousands of wells and draft procedures that production engineers review before the agents route the work; Occidental reported about 2% better uptime and 30% less nonproductive production technician time where the tools run, and gave an estimated 2026 production uplift of 4,000 boe/d in Sep 2026, before the year closed. | U.S. Onshore operations | In production | |
| Routeless operations and remote command centers Automation, field sensors and AI prioritize lease operator routes so remote centers diagnose issues before anyone is sent, covering about 40% of Occidental's U.S. production; centers run in the Permian, the Rockies and, since the fourth quarter of 2025, the Gulf of America. | U.S. Onshore and Gulf of America operations | In production | |
| Workover planning and artificial lift reliability AI-supported job plans, AI intervention and repair intelligence that uses scenario modeling to anticipate risks, and an AI surveillance program for artificial lift wells help Occidental plan downhole maintenance; Occidental credits the cost gains to operational expertise combined with AI. | U.S. Onshore operations | In production | |
| Real-time drilling execution Occidental processes drilling data in real time across all Delaware Basin rigs and one Gulf of America drillship, with neural-network predictive analytics, smart alarms, AI-generated drilling roadmaps and a manage-by-exception approach; drilling time consistency improved 23% in 2026. Occidental's Sep 2026 presentation listed more than $30 million of well cost savings in 2026 as an impact, a full-year figure given before the year closed. | Drilling and completions | In production | |
| Completion design optimization A multivariate analysis model built on more than 5,000 wells and over 200 subsurface, engineering, operational and economic parameters optimizes frac designs; in one 3rd Bone Spring test, seven model-generated designs ran in a single instrumented well and the chosen design raised estimated ultimate recovery by 15%. Occidental's Sep 2026 presentation listed more than $20 million of well cost savings in 2026 and an expected production uplift of about 3% in 2026 as impacts, both given before the year closed. | Drilling and completions | In production | |
| Integrated well design and planning AI combines subsurface and offset drilling data to optimize well design, placement and completion design, with lateral rate-of-penetration heat maps, agentic review of offset wells and reservoir pressure mapping; Occidental said the work cut engineering planning workflows by 50% in 2026. | Drilling and completions | In production | |
| AI reservoir characterization Occidental built several AI tools for reservoir characterization in 2025 and put them into its traditional geoscience platforms, where blind tests against actual well results confirmed better predictions. | Subsurface and exploration | In production | |
| Gulf of America subsurface AI Occidental launched an evaluation of complex deepwater Gulf of America prospects with data analytics and AI in 2024, slowing exploration while it ran. Vicki Hollub said in Feb 2025 that the work could also help Occidental's Gulf waterflood projects, and in Aug 2025 that teams could start acting on the results in the one to two years after the end of 2025. | Subsurface and exploration | Pilot | |
| Inspection, reliability and safety agents Occidental's Gulf of America operations pair LiDAR inspection programs with AI models, run agentic root cause analysis and predictive agents with reliability-centered maintenance, and give staff COACH, an AI assistant that improves the quality of safety observations. | Gulf of America operations | In production | |
| Logistics and supply chain Occidental's Gulf of America operations use AI for supply chain management (Feb 2025), a focused AI team works on logistics and supply chain (Aug 2025), and Occidental lists agentic logistics and supply chain among its levers for base production (Sep 2026). | Supply chain | In production | |
| AI-supported inspections Occidental uses drones and remotely operated sensors, supported by analytics and AI, to find equipment and emissions issues earlier and to improve asset integrity data, according to its 2026 Sustainability Report. | Health, safety and environment | In production | |
| AI-based cyber defense Occidental uses advanced technologies, including AI-based tools, to strengthen its cyber defenses and support business operations, according to its 2025 Form 10-K. | Cybersecurity | In production |
Adoption
Occidental spread AI from the field upward: a closed-loop plunger lift AI begun in 2021, AI in Rockies plunger lift by May 2023, an AI evaluation of Gulf of America deepwater prospects in 2024, an AI Center of Excellence by Feb 2025, about 40% of onshore production on routeless remote operations by Aug 2025, and 14 deployed AI projects by the end of 2025. By Sep 2026 AI surveilled about 9,000 and ran about 7,100 U.S. Onshore artificial lift wells, drilling AI ran on every Delaware Basin rig, and CXOTalk put the Chief of AI's portfolio at more than 200 use cases, from cameras in the field to enterprise search. Occidental has published no count of employees using AI tools and no figure for employee access to generative AI.
By the numbers
Rollout, first pilot to today
2021 to 2022
Occidental began building PLAI, a closed-loop plunger lift AI that changes well setpoints on its own, and after a year of trials on up to 300 wells extended it to 700 more within three months.
May 10, 2023
Occidental said its Rockies team had integrated AI into its plunger lift program to raise base production and cut operating costs.
Aug 3, 2023
Vicki Hollub said AI and advanced data analytics could make the Gulf of Mexico a growth area for Occidental within three to five years.
Aug 8, 2024
Vicki Hollub said Occidental had launched an evaluation of deepwater Gulf of Mexico prospects using data analytics and AI, and Kenneth Dillon referred to AI pilots in the Gulf.
Feb 19, 2025
Vicki Hollub said Occidental had created an AI Center of Excellence and that Gulf of America operations use AI for supply chain management, asset integrity and reservoir characterization.
Aug 7, 2025
Vicki Hollub said automation, field sensors and AI had moved about 40% of Occidental's onshore production to routeless operations, and that focused AI teams work on operations, the Gulf of America and supply chain.
Dec 2025
Occidental ended 2025 with 14 of its 20 new AI projects deployed, four in pilot and two in development, and with new AI reservoir characterization tools in its geoscience platforms.
Feb 19, 2026
Occidental said it had opened a Gulf of America Remote Operations Command Center in the fourth quarter of 2025, joining its Permian and Rockies centers, which use AI and remote monitoring.
Sep 2026
Occidental said AI runs 54% of its U.S. Onshore artificial lift wells on its own and that its Delaware Basin drilling and completion AI is rolling out across its operations.
Economics & controls
Spend and ROI
Technology budget
Occidental does not disclose a technology, IT or AI budget, or what AI costs it. Occidental's capital expenditures from continuing operations were about $6.4 billion in 2025, and CFO Sunil Mathew put the starting point for 2027 capital spending at $5.9 billion (Aug 2026).
Reported ROI
Occidental reports no firm-level return from AI. Occidental's Mar 2026 proxy statement says the company developed 20 AI projects in 2025, each estimated at $10 million to $90 million of annual benefit, and deployed 14 of them by year-end, but gives neither a total nor a realized figure. Occidental's reported AI returns are production gains in U.S. Onshore artificial lift, where Occidental said in Sep 2026 that AI delivers up to a 7% annual production uplift. Occidental's other Sep 2026 AI figures were full-year 2026 figures given before the year closed: more than $50 million of well cost savings from Delaware Basin drilling and completion AI, and an estimated 4,000 barrels of oil equivalent a day from AI field operations in New Mexico's Delaware Basin.
AI in the 2030 plan
Occidental expects annual sustainable cash flow about $4 billion higher by 2030 than in 2025, with about $0.8 billion from oil and gas efficiencies and $1.7 billion from corporate savings. Occidental says development efficiencies and AI integration are expected to make a 12% cut in U.S. Onshore new well costs possible by 2030 against 2025, and Sunil Mathew said in Aug 2026 that 2026 well costs were on track to be 7% better.
Gains shared with other changes
Occidental credits several cost gains to operational expertise combined with AI, without separating AI's share: U.S. Onshore lease operating and transportation costs per barrel fell 14% from 2023 to 2025, and Occidental expects downhole maintenance job costs 19% lower and artificial lift failures 22% less frequent in 2026 than in 2023 (Sep 2026). Occidental's expected 2025 onshore operating cost savings of about $150 million, announced in May 2025, also span many measures.
Workforce efficiency
Occidental had 10,412 employees in continuing operations at the end of 2025 and targets a 10% improvement in workforce efficiency by 2030 through simplification and technology deployment (Aug 2026). Richard Jackson said in May 2026 that the work spans technologies like AI and a review of processes and priorities, and Occidental said in Sep 2026 that its AI surveillance and automation of artificial lift equals about 1 million workhours a year. Occidental has announced no job cuts attributed to AI.
Governance and risk
Board oversight
Occidental's Board reviewed the company's existing uses of AI, potential generative AI opportunities in data analytics, and the associated risks at its 2025 strategic planning meeting, received updates on AI projects in director education sessions, and some directors attended outside programs on AI in 2025, according to the Mar 2026 proxy statement.
Executive pay tied to AI
Occidental added strategy and innovation goals worth 20% of the 2025 executive annual cash incentive, including an AI goal to develop and deploy at least 10 AI applications worth more than $10 million each in annual value, and AI tools for reservoir characterization judged against actual well results. Occidental's Compensation Committee rated the technology and AI goals above target, and named executive officers were paid 125% of their target annual award (Mar 2026 proxy statement).
Cybersecurity and AI risk
Occidental's CIO heads cybersecurity and data protection and reports directly to the CEO, the Audit Committee oversees IT security, and separate teams handle business network and industrial control system risks under a program aligned with the NIST framework. Occidental's 2025 Form 10-K warns that AI may expand the capabilities of cyber threat actors and says Occidental uses AI-based tools in its own defenses.
People approve agent work
Occidental's agentic production assistants in New Mexico's Delaware Basin draft engineering procedures, and a production engineer reviews, edits and approves each one before the agents route the work across teams (Sep 2026).
Competitive risk
Occidental's 2025 Form 10-K lists competitors' adoption of new technologies, including AI, as a risk that could put Occidental at a disadvantage and require significant investment to stay competitive.
Recent signals
Oct 22, 2026
Alexander Lach, who manages AI development in Occidental's Operations Technology group, spoke on an SPE Annual Technical Conference panel on the return from AI in energy; his speaker biography says his team applies agents to workflow automation, image recognition to emissions reduction and deep learning to artificial lift.
Sep 15, 2026
CXOTalk announced a Sep 18 interview with Patrick Bangert, saying he leads Occidental's Applied AI Center of Excellence, that his team runs more than 200 AI use cases, and that most are built on machine learning and computer vision rather than large language models.
Sep 2026
Occidental said at its Advanced Recovery presentation that AI runs 54% of its U.S. Onshore artificial lift wells on its own, about 7,100 wells, and that it expects more than 90% autonomous surveillance and operation by 2030.
Sep 2026
Occidental put 2026 well cost savings from its Delaware Basin drilling and completion AI at more than $50 million, a full-year figure given before the year closed, said the AI is rolling out across its operations, and said agentic production assistants run in New Mexico's Delaware Basin.
Aug 6, 2026
Richard Jackson listed AI with CO2, power and water as the technologies Occidental integrates to reach about $4 billion more in annual sustainable cash flow by 2030, a plan that includes a 10% workforce efficiency milestone.
Jun 1, 2026
Richard Jackson became President and CEO of Occidental, succeeding Vicki Hollub, who retired and stays on the Board.
May 6, 2026
Vicki Hollub said Occidental will combine its data and technical foundation with advanced analytics and AI, and Richard Jackson said AI is taking a larger role across all disciplines at Occidental.
May 1, 2026
Occidental announced that Chief Operating Officer Richard Jackson would succeed Vicki Hollub as CEO on Jun 1, 2026.
Apr 2026
Occidental engineers told the Southwestern Petroleum Short Course that PLAI, the closed-loop plunger lift AI Occidental began building in 2021, is now its main way of managing plunger lift wells.
Mar 19, 2026
Occidental's proxy statement said it developed 20 AI projects in 2025, each estimated at $10 million to $90 million of annual benefit, deployed 14 by year-end, and rated the executive bonus AI goal above target.
Feb 19, 2026
Occidental said it opened a Gulf of America Remote Operations Command Center using AI and remote monitoring, and Richard Jackson said the Rockies center resolved about 300 issues a day remotely during a winter storm.
Feb 18, 2026
Occidental's 2025 Form 10-K reported 10,412 employees in continuing operations and said Occidental uses AI-based tools to strengthen its cyber defenses.
Jan 2, 2026
Occidental completed the $9.7 billion sale of its chemical business, OxyChem, to Berkshire Hathaway, so Occidental can focus on its oil and gas portfolio.
Nov 2025
Patrick Bangert, Occidental's Vice President and Chief of AI, spoke on a panel at ADIPEC in Abu Dhabi, according to Occidental's 2026 Sustainability Report.
Quick answers
- How does Occidental Petroleum deploy AI?
- Occidental Petroleum deploys AI mostly in its oilfields: AI runs artificial lift on about 7,100 U.S. onshore wells, models steer drilling and completion design, agents screen wells and draft engineering procedures, and remote centers monitor the Permian, Rockies and Gulf of America. Chief of AI Patrick Bangert and an AI Center of Excellence build the tools in-house, and AWS has been Occidental's preferred cloud since 2023. Occidental reports AI returns only from production gains in artificial lift, and names no model provider and no employee-wide AI assistant.
- What does Occidental Petroleum use AI for?
- Occidental Petroleum developed 20 AI projects in 2025, each estimated at $10 million to $90 million of annual benefit, and had deployed 14 of them by year-end, with four in pilot and two in development; CXOTalk put the Chief of AI's portfolio at more than 200 use cases in Sep 2026. Occidental Petroleum has reported a return it credits to AI for two use cases, both in U.S. Onshore artificial lift: AI plunger lift optimization (2,500 boe/d of annual production uplift) and AI gas lift optimization (a 3% annual production uplift), both in Sep 2026. Occidental's Sep 2026 figures for drilling, completion and New Mexico field operations AI, more than $50 million of 2026 well cost savings and an estimated 4,000 boe/d of 2026 production, were full-year figures given before the year closed. Occidental gives no firm-level AI return and does not separate AI from other drivers of its lower operating costs.
- Who leads AI at Occidental Petroleum?
- AI at Occidental Petroleum is led by Yanni Charalambous (Vice President and Chief Information Officer); Patrick Bangert (Vice President and Chief of AI). Ownership of AI on the org chart: VP and Chief of AI Patrick Bangert and an AI Center of Excellence; the CIO reports to the CEO.
- What AI platform does Occidental Petroleum use?
- Occidental builds its AI applications in-house: it set up an AI Center of Excellence by Feb 2025 to align AI work across the company, with focused teams for operations, the Gulf of America, and logistics and supply chain (Aug 2025).
- Which AI models does Occidental Petroleum use?
- Occidental runs its own machine learning, including neural networks for drilling analytics, a multivariate model built on more than 5,000 wells, and agents for production engineering (Sep 2026); it names no model provider, and AWS has been its preferred cloud since Jul 2023.
- How many Occidental employees use AI?
- AI surveils 68% of Occidental's U.S. Onshore artificial lift wells, about 9,000, and runs 54%, about 7,100, on its own (Sep 2026); employee use of AI tools across its 10,412 staff is not disclosed.
- How far has AI spread at Occidental Petroleum?
- Occidental Petroleum has reported business returns it credits to AI in one function, U.S. Onshore artificial lift: its Sep 2026 Advanced Recovery presentation says AI plunger lift optimization adds 2,500 barrels of oil equivalent a day of annual production and AI gas lift optimization delivers a 3% annual production uplift. Occidental's other AI figures are estimates: more than $50 million of 2026 well cost savings from Delaware Basin drilling and completion AI and an estimated 4,000 barrels a day from New Mexico AI field operations were full-year 2026 figures given in Sep 2026, before the year closed, and the Mar 2026 proxy statement puts each of the 20 AI projects developed in 2025 at $10 million to $90 million of estimated annual benefit, with no total. On rollout, Occidental has not reported how many of its 10,412 employees use AI tools; AI runs about 7,100 U.S. Onshore artificial lift wells, Vice President and Chief of AI Patrick Bangert leads the Applied AI Center of Excellence, and the 2025 executive bonus carried an AI deployment goal. Occidental Petroleum is therefore at Piloting; it falls short of Scaling because its reported AI returns sit in artificial lift alone, it credits no realized firm-level figure to AI, and it has no company-wide AI platform whose owner reports results.
Open questions
- Which model providers run Occidental's AI, do its models run on AWS, its preferred cloud since 2023, or in its own data centers, and does Occidental use any generative AI model from an outside provider?
- Do Occidental employees have a sanctioned generative AI assistant, is the enterprise search CXOTalk mentioned open to all staff, and how many people use it?
- Whom does Patrick Bangert, Vice President and Chief of AI, report to, when did he take the role, and do the Operations Technology and Oman AI teams report to him?
- How many people work in Occidental's AI Center of Excellence and focused AI teams?
- What is the total estimated annual benefit of the 14 AI projects Occidental deployed in 2025, and how much of it has been realized?
- Once 2026 closes, will Occidental report the realized well cost savings of its Delaware Basin drilling and completion AI, put at more than $50 million in Sep 2026, and the realized production gain from its New Mexico AI field operations?
- What does Occidental spend on AI and on technology overall?
- What business return do Occidental's deployed AI tools with no published figures deliver, such as rod pump optimization, Gulf of America inspection and reliability agents, AI reservoir characterization and supply chain AI?
- How much of the 10% workforce efficiency milestone for 2030 depends on AI, and will it reduce headcount?
- What has Occidental's AI evaluation of Gulf of America deepwater prospects found, and has it changed exploration or waterflood decisions?
- Who leads U.S. Onshore operations, and whom does the Chief Petrotechnical Officer report to, now that Occidental lists no COO?
Sources
Occidental
Filings and investor materials
- Advanced Recovery presentation (Sep 2026)
- Q2 2026 conference call slides (Aug 6, 2026)
- Q2 2026 earnings call transcript (Aug 6, 2026)
- Q1 2026 earnings call transcript (May 6, 2026)
- Q4 2025 earnings call transcript (Feb 19, 2026)
- Q3 2025 earnings call transcript (Nov 11, 2025)
- Q2 2025 earnings call transcript (Aug 7, 2025)
- Q1 2025 earnings call transcript (May 8, 2025)
- Q4 2024 earnings call transcript (Feb 19, 2025)
- Q2 2024 earnings call transcript (Aug 8, 2024)
- Q3 2023 earnings call transcript (Nov 8, 2023)
- Q2 2023 earnings call transcript (Aug 3, 2023)
- Q1 2023 earnings call transcript (May 10, 2023)
- 2025 Form 10-K (filed Feb 18, 2026)
- 2026 proxy statement (filed Mar 19, 2026)
- Form 8-K on CEO succession and annual meeting results (May 4, 2026)
Partners, conferences and interviews
- JPT: Occidental picks AWS as cloud provider (Jul 27, 2023)
- CXOTalk: Occidental's Chief AI Officer, AI at scale in the physical world (Sep 15, 2026)
- SPE ATCE 2026 speaker: Alexander Lach
- SPE ATCE 2026 special session on the return from AI in energy (Oct 22, 2026)
- Southwestern Petroleum Short Course 2026: From routes to exceptions, automating plunger lift well management
- JPT: Artificial lift, by Fahd Saghir (Oct 1, 2025)
- Kogan Page author biography: Patrick Bangert
Data confidence
- Confirmed
- Stated in a primary or reputable public source.
- Estimated
- Derived or approximated from public reporting.
- Unconfirmed
- Reported, but not yet corroborated.
Occidental Petroleum profile · Enterprise AI diffusion report by Imagine · facts checked against their sources on Nov 1, 2026
