E-Business
Robotics, Control & Virtual Reality: Why Digital Transformation is Critical for Mining
Transformation through the forces of technology change and disruption is a significant dynamic only recently seen in the mining sector. In fact, many may ask what it means to be transformative for an asset intensive industry like mining.
IT and technology investments that are enabling the connection of the physical with the virtual – through a raft of technologies, sensors and solutions – are enabling mining companies to create transparency across their operations.
The transformation we are seeing though is not just about being able to see what is happening across the mine, but to create the ability to control and ultimately to respond predictively.
The future of mining is to create the capability to manage the mine as a system – through an integrated web of technologies such as virtualization, robotics, Internet of Things (IoT), sensors, connectivity and mobility – to command, control and respond.
The mining sector is facing a period of enormous challenges. The fall in prices across commodities continues to impact the cost, asset and debt settings mining companies need to have.
Prevailing challenges that have been present for a long time but have been unresolved are now becoming critical.
Globally, productivity has been falling despite commodity price boom and supply chain investments.
The physicality of many mining operations is becoming increasingly difficult. Therefore, it’s not surprising that in IDC Energy Insights’ recent survey of 190 miners globally, the top priority is saving costs.
Mining companies are under more pressure than ever to get more materials from the ground at the lowest possible cost and the highest possible grade.
Hence, mining companies are looking for new ways of doing things, profit maximization is the top business concern of mining companies as they work to change the cost and efficiency settings of their operations.
This is an environment of change and within that one where the role of technology and its importance to the core activity of mining is becoming a critical enabler for the mining operations – that consistently meet leading financial and production performance metrics.
IDC Energy Insights research shows that mining companies are looking to a future where technology is changing the operations of the mine.
The top strategic objective of mining operations in 2015 are: safety improvement, automation of assets, mine operations management and control.
IDC research shows that 69% of mining companies globally are looking at remote operation and monitoring centres, 56% at new mine methods, 29% at robotics and 27% at unmanned drones.
Globally, 83% of mining companies say that their technology budgets will increase or stay the same in 2015.
The ability of data intelligence, data integration and technologies like robotics to change the physical nature of mining is real and across the sector, with leading mining companies taking steps to take advantage of these capabilities.
Breaking digital transformation down into its parts helps demonstrate what digital transformation means to mining companies.
IDC’s perspective on digital transformation is made up of five parts – experience transformation, work source transformation, operating model transformation, information transformation and leadership transformation.
Digital transformation is not all about the technology, but for each of these components of transformation, the technology of IDC’s third platform – cloud, mobility, big data analytics and social business – are enablers.
The third platform in combination with innovation accelerators such as robotics, IoT and cognitive computing are fundamentally changing what it means to operate a mine as mining companies make the interconnection between the virtual and the physical.
For mining companies, the creation of competitive differentiation through going digital, is about how technology is changing the physical reality of managing mining operations – by changing work practices, changing the types of roles and changing the processes that are core to mining operations – and in the process contributing to a significant improvement in productivity.
Out of the five elements, three of which are of most critical importance to mining companies’ transformation now.
First is Operating Model Transformation – the connection of people and things to create efficient and effective operations.
This is a critical focus of investment we are seeing across the mining sector now. Asset management – particularly employing more predictive maintenance approaches to minimize equipment outages and its impact on production performance.
Dynamic planning and scheduling is another area that we are expecting to see a lot of movement in the way operating model transformation takes place in mining. Second is Information Transformation – to enable utilization of data across operations to create greater value and ultimately to treat data as an asset.
Third is Work Source Transformation – not just about having the right skills in place to support the transformation but also engaging and connecting with external stakeholders. This is a process that is starting for many mining companies as we see the importance of innovation and collaboration across senior leadership, IT and operational technology as mining companies seek more effective ways to utilize knowledge across the organization.
Looking across the mining companies that have been most successful with their transformation initiatives to date, the stand out characteristic is the nature of their leaders’ vision.
While still developing across the mining sector globally, leadership transformation – where senior leadership has a vision for the transformation of their organization and a sophisticated understanding of technology – needs to play a role with more impact than we are currently seeing across the sector.
Companies that have been able to successfully transform their digital capabilities display the following characteristics, and for mining companies taking steps to move their digital maturity, IDC makes the following recommendations associated with each area:
A willingness to openly experiment with new technology. Work across your organization to create research insights with internal and external stakeholders.
Look externally, collect examples and look to other industries for examples of successful approaches across process innovation and technology initiatives.
A willingness to change the norms of their business model. Data-led insights and automation will only deliver value if there is a culture of change. Be willing to change the established ways of doing things, change work practices and approaches.
A willingness to make bold bets when the time is right. Mining companies have significant legacy data investments in place already.
The investments required to create visibility and control are often challenging and have an associated level of risk.
To achieve a significant improvement in productivity, there will ultimately need to be a willingness to take on measured risk. Start with short sharp examples to demonstrate value, and as you work towards larger investments, demonstrate value to stakeholders at each stage.
Remember the critical importance of marketing internally to drive support across all stakeholder groups.
Microsoft is planning to unveil its new Maia 300 AI chip this fall, potentially as soon as next month, The Information reported on Monday, citing people with direct knowledge of the plans.
The company introduced its Maia AI chip in November 2023 but has lagged rivals such as Alphabet and Amazon in scaling up its in-house chip efforts as it seeks to reduce its reliance on Nvidia’s costly processors.
Google began recognizing revenue from direct sales of its custom AI chips, called Tensor Processing Units, in the quarter ended June, while Amazon has also seen growing adoption of its processors, including its Trainium chips.
Microsoft has been in talks with chipmaker TSMC to secure manufacturing capacity for more than 300,000 units of the chip for delivery in 2027, according to the report. It is also looking to significantly ramp up production and persuade major cloud customers such as Anthropic to adopt the chip.
Microsoft ultimately aims to secure capacity for more than 1 million Maia 300 chips, though component supplies and ongoing capacity negotiations with TSMC could constrain its plans, according to the report.
It unveiled its second-generation Maia 200 in January, built by TSMC using 3-nanometer technology.
Microsoft packed the chip with a significant amount of SRAM, a type of memory that can provide speed advantages for AI systems handling large numbers of user requests.
X has announced plans to discontinue its Revenue Sharing programme and introduce a new Original Content Rewards programme to reward creators for producing original content on the platform.
The social media company announced the changes at the weekend in a post on its X Creators handle, saying the new programme would reward creators who contribute original content.
“Today, we’re introducing the Original Content Rewards Program, a new way to reward creators who bring original ideas, expertise, reporting, creativity, and commentary to X,” the company said.
X said it would stop accepting new enrolments into the Revenue Sharing programme from Friday, while existing participants would continue earning until September 7, 2026.
“Starting today, we’re no longer accepting new enrollments into Revenue Sharing,” it said.
According to the company, existing Revenue Sharing participants will receive three final payouts, with two scheduled for August 14 and August 28, while the final payment for earnings accrued through September 7 is expected around September 11.
X said existing Revenue Sharing participants would begin getting access to apply for the new programme from September 8, subject to meeting its eligibility requirements.
The first payout under the Original Content Rewards programme will be made on August 28, 2026, while existing Revenue Sharing creators who enrol in the new programme from September 8 will receive their first payment on September 25.
Under the new programme, eligible creators will earn from qualified impressions generated by their original content, with payments made every two weeks.
X defined qualified impressions as unique impressions from Premium users on the Home Timeline feed, where at least 50 per cent of a post is visible.
On the other hand, “The following are excluded from qualified impressions: impressions from the same account counted more than once per post; paid, promoted, or artificially generated impressions; and fraudulent impressions,” it said.
To qualify, creators must be at least 18 years old, live in a country where the programme is available, maintain an account in good standing and have either a personal or vusiness account.
They must also subscribe to X Premium, Premium+ or Premium Business, have at least 500 verified followers and record at least 500,000 Home Timeline impressions from verified users within the previous 90 days.
X said creators must also regularly post original content to remain eligible.
“We want to recognize creators who break news, share expertise, tell stories, create entertainment, and contribute meaningful perspectives to the conversation,” the company said.
The platform said original content could include threads, videos, memes, graphics, illustrations, reporting, analysis, commentary and reactions that add meaningful value to existing conversations.
It said creators who use content produced by others would need to add meaningful commentary, context, analysis, humour or creative transformation for such posts to qualify.
“Building on existing conversations is a core part of X, but simply reposting someone else’s content is not enough,” it said.
X said minor edits such as cropping, filters, borders, watermarks, speed adjustments or simple text overlays would generally not qualify as meaningful transformation on their own.
It also warned that content copied or substantially reproduced from another creator, content downloaded and re-uploaded from X or another platform without being the original author’s, automated content, disinformation and misleading content would be ineligible.
The company said accounts that violate the programme’s requirements could be temporarily or permanently removed from it, depending on the severity of the violation.
It added that creators would be responsible for ensuring they had the necessary rights, permissions or licences to use content created by others.
“Original content is content you personally create that reflects your own voice, perspective, expertise, or creativity,” X said.
The company said the new programme was intended to reward creators who make the platform more valuable by bringing original ideas and perspectives to its conversations.
“The Original Content Rewards Program is designed to reward the creators who start them, shape them, and move them forward,” it said.
National Information Technology Development Agency (NITDA) has introduced so-called Nigeria’s Certified Cloud Register, regulatory framework developed under the agency’s National Sovereign Cloud Initiative to determine which cloud providers are authorized to handle sensitive data, such as banking records.
In effect, from October, NITDA requires banks, fintech companies and other regulated organisations to source cloud infrastructure providers from a national register of certified firms approved to host sensitive financial and government data.
The Certified Cloud Register, is expected to strengthen data sovereignty, improve regulatory oversight and support the implementation of the Central Bank of Nigeria’s (CBN) data localisation policy, which takes effect on January 1, 2027.
Under the framework, banks, fintechs, government institutions and other regulated entities will be able to verify whether cloud service providers, data centre operators, managed service providers and Artificial Intelligence (AI) infrastructure companies have met NITDA’s certification requirements before entrusting them with critical digital workloads.
The initiative is expected to provide regulated institutions with a standardised process for selecting cloud infrastructure providers that satisfy Nigeria’s technical, security and regulatory requirements.
According to NITDA, the framework establishes “a common national standard, an independent assessment process and a public register of approved providers that banks, fintechs and government institutions can rely on when selecting cloud infrastructure partners.”
The register is expected to become a key compliance tool ahead of the CBN’s directive, which requires all payment transaction data generated within Nigeria to be stored and processed locally, effective from January 1, 2027.
The policy applies to deposit money banks, microfinance banks, mobile money operators, payment service providers, switching companies and other financial institutions.
The certification regime is also expected to reshape Nigeria’s cloud computing ecosystem, making regulatory approval a major requirement for cloud providers seeking to handle sensitive data for regulated industries.
Figures cited by NITDA showed that Nigeria’s 10 largest banks spent about N177.91 billion on information technology in the first quarter of 2026, representing a 31 per cent increase over the corresponding period last year.
A sizeable portion of the investment currently supports cloud infrastructure hosted outside Nigeria, a trend the new certification framework is expected to address by encouraging greater utilisation of compliant local infrastructure.
NITDA said the certification programme will apply the same technical and regulatory standards to indigenous cloud providers and international hyperscale operators, creating a level playing field for all companies seeking to provide cloud services to regulated sectors.
The agency also disclosed that more than 85 per cent of Nigerian businesses currently rely on cloud services, with the majority using infrastructure hosted outside the country.
It said the new framework is aimed at improving confidence in Nigeria’s digital infrastructure while promoting local capacity and enhancing oversight of critical national data.
Speaking on the objective of the initiative, Kashifu Inuwa Abdullahi, director-general of NITDA, said the programme is designed to strengthen Nigeria’s position in the global digital economy rather than exclude foreign technology companies.
According to him, the initiative is intended “to redefine the terms under which Nigeria participates in the global digital economy rather than isolate the country from international technology providers.”
The Certified Cloud Register forms part of broader efforts by the Federal Government to deepen digital trust, strengthen cybersecurity and ensure that critical financial and public sector data are managed in line with Nigeria’s evolving data governance and sovereignty objectives.
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