Luther Birdzell
Luther Birdzell is passionate about energy efficiency and has found his calling as an agent for democratizing AI. From boardrooms to oil fields to data centers, he has been transforming data from a cost to an asset for more than 20 years.
Birdzell earned two degrees in electrical engineering from Dartmouth College. An engineer, data scientist and entrepreneur, he has built and led world-class software development teams, architected SaaS products and conceptualized and executed go-to-market strategies for multiple new offerings.
Leadership: Birdzell founded OAG Analytics in 2013 to build a cloud-based software platform to help upstream oil and gas companies improve the predictability of well production. This move was spurred by Birdzell’s passion for energy efficiency and learning about the extent of underutilized data by many upstream asset teams. Through his company, Birdzell is helping operators improve their development strategies and integrate AI into upstream oil and gas workflows to enable faster, smarter decisions that lead to better results and greater profitability.
As an AI pioneer, Birdzell was among the first to apply AI and machine learning to field development planning and well design while most others were focused on production surveillance. He is an innovator who is always looking for ways to simplify solutions to complex problems.
Birdzell has built up OAG Analytics to become the leading AI and machine-learning software provider for the upstream oil and gas industry, providing solutions to critical problems like derisking the subsurface and improving the predictability of well spacing and future cash flows. One example of his ability to view challenges and develop solutions from a different perspective is OAG’s pivot in 2019 to enable customers to create and add their own proprietary algorithms to OAG’s platform, which has revolutionized multiple operators’ well spacing strategies.
Birdzell was recognized early in his career for distinguished achievements innovating high-value solutions for customer-focused initiatives, and his commitment to effecting change in the oil and gas sector continues to deliver superior value, advancing AI and machine learning to benefit the industry.
Perspective: “Affordable energy is essential to our way of life, and a thriving U.S. energy sector has positive implications worldwide,” Birdzell says. “Traditional analytics cannot achieve the accelerated efficiencies that will enable us to attain these objectives. That is why we are focused on deriving unprecedented value from AI and machine learning to improve drilling unit economics. Our customers are achieving remarkable successes, and I am inspired daily by their breakthroughs.”