GoKawiilAVEVA exec says AI-powered 'living' digital twins enable real-time plant intervention
AVEVA chief product officer Rob McGreevy describes a shift from static digital twins, which only simulated and observed industrial systems, toward AI-infused 'living' digital twins that continuously update with live data and can act through control systems. Agentic AI is pushing these systems further, allowing them to make small autonomous adjustments to keep plants running smoothly rather than just flagging problems for humans to fix.
GoKawiil's interpretation of the reporting above, not reported fact.
This signals a broader industry shift from AI as an advisory tool toward AI as an active participant in industrial operations, which could change how quickly facilities respond to equipment wear or inefficiencies. However, the emphasis on retaining human oversight suggests that full autonomy still raises trust and safety questions that companies like AVEVA are trying to address before ceding more control to machines.
- Living digital twins combine real-time data with the ability to intervene in physical operations, unlike earlier simulation-only models.
- Agentic AI is moving industrial systems from passive diagnostics toward autonomous, continuous adjustments.
- Human operators remain responsible for defining normal conditions and overseeing when AI systems deviate from expected behavior.
Source: technologyreview.com — Mit Technology Review Insights, 2026-10-28
Published there as: “Pairing industrial AI autonomy and human control”
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