Sentient Computing

The gap between pilot and production is where most mining technology deployments fail.

Not because the technology doesn't work. Because most organisations haven't built the internal structures to absorb it inlcuding; the procurement pathways, the IT governance, the operational champions, the cultural readiness to put new tools in the hands of people on site.
Sentient MD Doug Bester put that argument to operators and decision-makers at the AusIMM Iron Ore | Open Pit Operators Conference this week.

The tools are ready, real-time digital twins, VR training environments, remote simulation and planning are mature enough to deploy at scale. The question is no longer whether the technology works. It is whether your organisation is structured to sustain it through a technology cycle.

What separates companies that have scaled immersive technology from those still running pilots is not budget or vendor selection. It is a deliberate investment in internal capability, procurement teams that understand what they are buying, IT engaged before go-live, and operational leaders willing to back the change with their own credibility.

Without those conditions, even the best technology becomes shelf-ware.
Full article via Austmine News https://austmine.com.au/Public/News/Articles/2026/Jun/Why_mining_technology_deployments_stall.aspx

If your organisation is navigating this gap, we have done this before.
Drop a comment or reach out directly.

You don't need a pitch. You need to see something that actually works.

At IOOP26, Stand 13 we have live demos of the Fire Extinguisher VR training, digital twins, and immersive simulations that Sentient delivers to iron ore and energy operators across Australia.

No slides. No theory. Just the tools your site teams are already using.

And while you're there don't miss Doug Bester's keynote on building digital resilience on 8.30am, Thursday 25th.

Come say hello to the team 👋 AusIMM Iron Ore Open Pit Operators Conference

📍 Stand 13 · Perth Convention Centre · 23–25 June

Digital resilience in mining isn't about having the best technology. It's about building the right structures to adopt, adapt, and survive technology cycles.

That's the lens Bester will bring to his keynote at IOOP26 in Perth, 23–25 June.

After 35+ years in technical operations and nearly two decades steering Sentient through multiple technology waves . Doug has a perspective most speakers don't: what it actually takes to operationalise emerging tech in a risk-averse industry.

Expect practical lessons, not theory. What's worked. What hasn't. What the next cycle demands.

📌 Catch Doug at IOOP26 — registration link in comments. We're on Stand 13 if you want to see the tools behind the strategy.