Chicheng Xu

Chicheng Xu, SPE, is an upstream technology leader and independent subsurface digital consultant with over 2 decades of energy industry experience spanning SLB, BP, BHP, Aramco, and CNPC. He operates at the forefront of subsurface intelligence and automation, pioneering physics-informed data analytics, advanced log interpretation, and automated workflows integrating multiscale subsurface data sets.

A dedicated leader within professional societies, Xu cofounded and chaired the SPWLA Petrophysical Data-Driven Analytics Special Interest Group and currently spearheads the Open Petro Data & Utilities initiative to implement Petro-LLM capabilities for the industry. His extensive editorial tenure includes serving on the boards of SEG Interpretation, SPWLA Petrophysics, and SPE Reservoir Evaluation & Engineering. In September 2025, he was appointed executive editor of the flagship SPE Journal.

Xu’s contributions have been recognized with numerous prestigious honors, including the 2018 SPE Gulf Coast North America Regional Formation Evaluation Award, the 2022 SPE Gulf Coast North America Regional Data Science and Engineering Analytics Award, and the 2025 SPWLA Distinguished Technical Achievement Award. For his editorial dedication, he was named an SPE A Peer Apart Honoree in 2025. He holds a PhD in petroleum engineering from The University of Texas at Austin.