# The Path to Autonomous Frac

Page: https://stenobird.com/podcast/energy-101-we-ask-the-dumb-questions-so-you-don-t-have-to-5658842/the-path-to-autonomous-frac
Text version: https://stenobird.com/podcast/energy-101-we-ask-the-dumb-questions-so-you-don-t-have-to-5658842/the-path-to-autonomous-frac.md
Podcast: [Energy 101: We Ask The Dumb Questions So You Don't Have To](https://stenobird.com/podcast/energy-101-we-ask-the-dumb-questions-so-you-don-t-have-to-5658842)
Published: 2026-05-13T16:29:08+00:00
Episode link: https://energy101.collide.io/episodes/the-frac-site-will-be-fully-autonomous-in-5-years
Audio file: https://media.transistor.fm/e7832f7d/e3ef7d14.mp3
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JSON: https://stenobird.com/v1/public/podcasts/energy-101-we-ask-the-dumb-questions-so-you-don-t-have-to-5658842/episodes/the-path-to-autonomous-frac
Duration seconds: 3197

## Resource

Building software inside a frac and wireline giant is a different beast than doing it at a startup. Ben Dickinson and Raleigh Bumpers from NexTier Completion Solutions get into life under the Patterson UTI umbrella, the EOS platform, the Vertex automated pump control system, the shift from diesel to natural gas powered fleets, agentic AI in the field, and why the world genuinely stops if oil and gas stops. Plus Pittsburgh shale stories and a Colorado School of Mines reality check. Click here to watch a video of this episode. Join the conversation shaping the future of energy. Collide is the community where oil & gas professionals connect, share insights, and solve real-world problems together. No noise. No fluff. Just the discussions that move our industry forward. Apply today at collide.io Click here to view the episode transcript. 0:00 The NexTier 60-second pitch 2:00 Why integrating every service on location wins 4:30 Ben's path from Pittsburgh to wireline to digital 11:15 Raleigh's jump from computer science to the Eagle Ford 17:00 If oil and gas stops, the world stops 19:30 Pittsburgh, the shale boom, and incoming data centers 21:30 Completions 101 23:30 The EOS platform and Vertex automated pump control 27:00 Earning trust from veteran hands on new software 32:00 Generative AI versus agentic AI in the field 34:00 Diesel, natural gas, and electric frac fleets 41:30 Colorado School of Mines and the next generation 44:00 The road to a fully autonomous well site 46:30 The 80 percent AI failure rule debate https://twitter.com/collide_ai https://www.tiktok.com/@collide.io https://www.facebook.com/collide.io https://www.instagram.com/collide.io https://www.youtube.com/@collide_io https://bsky.app/profile/collide-ai.bsky.social https://www.linkedin.com/company/collid…

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## Transcript

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