Twenty years ago, Big Oil companies like Shell and Exxon were the stars of the capital markets. Huge revenues, stellar profits, high share prices, robust price/earning ratios and reliable dividends placed these companies among the world’s best, magnets for top engineering talent and voices of influence in the halls of governments globally.

But no more. They lost the market leadership crown to the digital giants, including Apple, Microsoft, Amazon, and Google. Oil and gas concerns are still market leaders as measured by revenue, but not by other measures of value. The gap now is so vast it’s hard to imagine how they might ever regain their market positioning.

And now the digital companies are stretching into energy for their data centers, but not yet clean liquid energy, which creates the opportunity.

In this podcast I set out several steps the industry can take to recapture its former glory.

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Industrial operations have long depended on the OODA loop—Observe, Orient, Decide, Act—a military-inspired decision framework that works, but at great cost. It requires physical presence, human expertise, and often misses key variables hidden from view. This age-old method is embedded across energy infrastructure—from wells to refineries.

The digital age, however, is transforming our ability to observe. With billions of video-capable devices generating colossal amounts of data, and artificial intelligence now capable of interpreting this data in real time, there’s a game-changing opportunity at hand.

This episode explores the staggering scale and value of video data, and how AI’s emerging ability to interpret video feeds on the fly can augment, and in some cases replace, the human eye in the OODA loop. I outline some of the implications for quality inspections, site assembly checks, and future-proofing industrial operations.

Additional Tools & Resources

💡 Go backstage and check out my studio:

🔗 https://geoffreycann.com/mystudio/

📚 Take my one-day digital strategy training course for oil and gas:

🔗 https://www.udemy.com/course/digital-oil-and-gas/?referralCode=0161D4D49AB75735A185

Connect with Me

✍️ Blog: https://digitaloilgas.substack.com/

🎙️ Podcast: https://geoffreycann.com/broadcast/

💼 LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/advocate-digital-innovation-for-energy/

🐦 X: https://x.com/geoffreycann

Contact for Lectures and Keynotes

🎤 I speak regularly on these and other topics. Book a brief call to discuss your upcoming event needs.

Disclaimer

The views expressed in this podcast are my own and do not constitute professional advice.

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Offshore oil and gas operations are among the most complex and remote in the world. From harsh weather to limited physical access, these environments demand reliable, high-speed communications to enable modern digital workflows and keep operations running safely and efficiently.

As offshore operations become more autonomous and data-driven, the traditional telecom models fall short. Legacy systems struggle to meet rising demands for bandwidth, low latency, and mobility—especially when platforms are unmanned or vessels are constantly on the move.

Tampnet is addressing this head-on by delivering a mixed-mode communication strategy that combines subsea fiber, private 5G, and satellite (LEO) into one seamless network. Their infrastructure enables everything from robotic inspections and mobile edge compute to AI-driven automation—critical for modernizing offshore energy.

In this episode, I speak with Frode Støldal, Chief Digital Officer and President of the Americas at Tampnet. We explore how a hybrid telecom model is revolutionizing offshore connectivity, driving operational efficiencies, and accelerating digital transformation. From supporting 450+ global platforms to enabling real-time decision-making at the edge, Frode shares a glimpse of the offshore future—one powered by high-speed, intelligent infrastructure.

Frode Støldal is President Americas and Chief Digital Officer at Tampnet, the world’s largest offshore communications network provider. He brings 18+ years of telecom leadership from Telenor and now leads Tampnet’s digital strategy and operations across the Americas. Frode holds an MSc from the Norwegian School of Economics and a Master in Technology Management from MIT/NTNU.

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I speak regularly on digital transformation, AI, and innovation in energy. Let’s talk about your next event.

The views expressed in this podcast are my own and do not constitute professional advice.