ABU DHABI, United Arab Emirates / ConSynSer / – OpenAI chief executive Sam Altman described the UAE as the world’s most forward-looking country for artificial intelligence adoption. He was speaking on Monday during a panel discussion at the Abu Dhabi International Petroleum Exhibition and Conference, ADIPEC 2026. Altman also addressed the agreements announced between OpenAI, ADNOC and G42. He said the partnership between the three would help shape and enable the energy sector through AI.
The comments came on the same day that Abu Dhabi entities signed four agreements with OpenAI, covering the government, energy and investment sectors. Under one of them, ADNOC became the first energy company to deploy OpenAI’s frontier technology, working with G42 subsidiary Inception42. The system will run on OpenAI’s GPT models using in-country inference infrastructure in the UAE. Sheikh Khaled bin Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan, Crown Prince of Abu Dhabi, witnessed the signings.
Altman said AI has already begun to change the way people work. Tools such as ChatGPT are helping people perform their jobs more efficiently, he said. Some users are increasingly treating AI as a colleague or a member of their team. ADIPEC has placed AI at the center of this year’s program, with a dedicated AI Zone highlighting practical applications across energy operations.
AI turns to scientific discovery
Altman said what excites him most is the technology’s role in scientific discovery. Over the past few months, AI systems have begun tackling mathematical problems that people had been unable to solve, he noted. He said these capabilities could extend across different fields of science. They could also help address complex challenges facing energy production.
Turning to energy, Altman said the amount of energy required for each AI query is falling as efficiency improves. However, lower usage costs are encouraging people to use AI more. He said he hoped AI applications in the energy sector would generate enough benefits to offset the technology’s own energy consumption. Ultimately, he said, AI could help increase global energy availability. ADIPEC organizers have noted that the computing power required for AI is doubling every 100 days.
Keeping people in control
On jobs, Altman said AI is already capable of performing many parts of some white-collar roles. He nevertheless expressed confidence that societies would be able to adapt to the change. He stressed the importance of human creativity and judgment. People must remain in control of decisions, he said.
Altman said AI should be a tool that serves people, rather than a system entrusted with decisions about their future. ADIPEC 2026 runs from November 2 to 5 at the Abu Dhabi National Exhibition Centre under the patronage of UAE President Sheikh Mohamed bin Zayed Al Nahyan. Hosted by ADNOC, the event expects more than 239,000 visitors and over 2,250 exhibiting companies. The event opened with around 40 ministers and global chief executives taking part, WAM reported. OpenAI is also a partner in the Stargate UAE AI computing cluster in Abu Dhabi.
