Energy 101: We Ask The Dumb Questions So You Don't Have To

Digital Wildcatters
Digital Wildcatters
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Welcome to Energy 101 with Julie McLelland and Jacob Stiller. Join us on our mission to help raise the world's energy IQ.

  1. Oct 21

    Think First. Prompt Second. How To Stay Creative With AI

    AI can write your resume, your LinkedIn post, and your birthday flyer, but should it? Shiva Swaminathan, an AI product management leader doing fractional work across mining, edtech, and robotics, joins Jacob to make the case for keeping your brain switched on. They talk Uber drivers lost without their app, 100 identical resumes, CDs in the car, and why Shiva writes his own song lyrics and comic strips before letting AI touch a thing. 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. 00:00 Meet Shiva05:11 What AI shouldn't do07:13 What we risk losing09:11 The Uber driver story11:13 Going old school13:11 Resumes in the AI era16:02 Using AI with intention19:49 When to trust AI23:42 Slides and visuals25:36 Songwriting with AI27:49 Comic strips33:06 Stay curious33:50 The Canva paradox39:13 Industry-specific AI41:52 Most promising industries44:10 Kids and AI access47:01 Houstonhttps://twitter.com/collide_aihttps://www.tiktok.com/@collide.iohttps://www.facebook.com/collide.iohttps://www.instagram.com/collide.iohttps://www.youtube.com/@collide_iohttps://bsky.app/profile/collide-ai.bsky.socialhttps://www.linkedin.com/company/collideai

  2. Jun 29

    How One Mapping Tool Powers Oil Rigs, Armies, and Starbucks

    Maps quietly run the entire oil and gas world, you just never noticed. This one breaks down GIS without the jargon, from Google Earth doodles to the software that decides exactly where to drill. Richard Webb and Zach Harlan of Exprodat explain how mapping tech places wells, dodges the neighbor's boundary, and powers everything from Zillow to the military. Plus drilling on Mars, conspiracy toll roads, and why there are no dumb questions when the whole planet is your dataset. 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. 00:00 What URTeC is and why mapping matters03:40 Life as a map and rock guy06:42 What GIS means and the old guesswork days08:40 The pro software behind the maps10:29 Who uses these tools and how they learn14:40 Placing wells and the horizontal revolution19:11 Customizing every answer for the customer24:19 Data overload and the days before GIS29:45 Famous drilling mistakes and how basins differ34:20 Finding things in an ocean of blue38:26 AI, Collide, and toll road conspiracies42:44 GIS everywhere, from the military to Starbucks44:53 Mapping the sky and outer space48:21 Breaking into GIS and drilling on Marshttps://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/collideai

  3. Jun 15

    The Tiny Material That Could Replace Sand In Fracking

    Those giant pyramids of sand at every frac site exist for one reason, and it turns out the industry might be quietly running short on the good stuff. Curtis Wilie and Josh Johnson of Superior Energy Services break down how a coal byproduct called fly ash is shaking up the proppant game, why something three times finer than sand outperforms it, and how pulling forgotten barrels from legacy wells could matter more than drilling new ones. Plenty of analogies, zero shame about the dumb questions. 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. 00:00  Why there's sand everywhere on a frac site01:00  How hydraulic fracturing actually works04:00  River frac in the 1930s and the search for the right proppant06:00  The sand economy and a looming supply squeeze09:00  Where sand comes from and the Permian conveyor belt16:00  Meet EcoReach: fly ash instead of sand19:00  Lighter, stronger, finer, and how it travels farther21:00  Unlocking micro fractures and trillions of trapped barrels25:00  Sourcing ash from coal plants worldwide29:00  Walnut shells, steel balls, and other proppant experiments30:00  Skipping the blender and pumping at six barrels a minute33:00  Flowing like water and getting 90 percent of fluid back35:00  The floor jack analogy for frac initiation37:00  The godfather story and balancing the proppant triangle43:00  Who's adopting it and the case for refracshttps://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/collideai

  4. Jun 5

    The NASA Technology Now Tracking Oilfield Methane

    Methane is invisible, odorless, and far more potent than CO2 in the short term, so how do you actually catch it leaking? Brendan Smith, CEO of SeekOps Inc., explains how technology built for the Mars Curiosity rover ended up flying on drones over oil and gas sites here on Earth. We get into spectrometers versus satellites, why offshore detection is so tricky, what EU methane rules mean for US operators in 2027, and how SeekOps turns an invisible gas into something you can finally see. 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. 00:00   Setup and the Power Hour combo02:24   Crossing paths back in 201904:14   From PhD dropout to CEO05:24   JPL, the first patent, and Mars rover tech12:34   How a drone measures a methane plume13:49   Ground, drones, planes, and satellites19:00   Spinning out of JPL and the Equinor bet24:55   What methane is and why it matters29:01   Net zero and EU methane regulation32:00   LNG, coal, and offshore detection42:10   Lidar, photogrammetry, and 3D models45:36   What's overhyped and the road ahead49:24   Why Austin, and the Houston debate53:16   Wrap uphttps://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/collideai

  5. May 29

    The Secret to Surviving Every Oilfield Downturn

    Getting laid off twice taught Yogashri Pradhan, founder of IronLady Energy Advisors, that staying visible matters as much as staying technical. She traces a career running from UT petroleum engineering to Devon, Endeavor, Coterra and Chevron, the downturns that reshaped it, and why she got married in front of a pump jack. There is also honest talk on the Diamondback merger, the wildcatters she looks up to, where AI fits in the field, life in Midland, and her new book Fueling Impact. 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 Intro from Midland0:46 The full career timeline6:42 Studying petroleum at UT8:00 University Lands explained11:30 Devon and the Ivory Tower14:38 What a downturn really means20:00 Raising money in oil and gas22:30 The Endeavor and Diamondback merger24:35 Meeting Autry Stevens26:12 Wildcatters worth knowing27:33 Devon and Coterra coming together30:41 Inside Chevron34:24 Advice for picking the right company36:11 Going back for a master's and MBA39:00 Starting IronLady Energy Advisors43:16 Her connection to Wyoming45:52 Why she stays in Midland50:01 Working with OpsAI51:06 Where AI fits in energy54:34 Collide and the energy community56:19 The book Fueling Impact1:01:50 Sushi night with Chuckhttps://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/collideai

  6. May 18

    Why AI and Oil Are Fighting Over the Same Turbines

    Micro turbines hitting 83% efficiency could replace flares and turn stranded wells into tiny neighborhood power plants. Mark Ronkin of Grid Energy Solutions came down from Edmonton to talk with Jacob and guest host Britt Breaux about jumping from five years in the Canadian Army to wireline to running his own MWD shop, then stumbling into the tech at a gas show in Milan. Plus getting sick next to a flare, the oilfield marketing problem in eastern Canada, and why a 9 to 5 and entrepreneurship can coexist. 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 Intro and the FDE model at Collide5:46 Mark's path through the Canadian Army9:25 Oil and gas as a polarizing industry across Canada13:19 Louisiana refineries, Cancer Alley, and Alberta boomtowns19:08 Living downstream of a flare21:18 Military to wireline to MWD25:09 Going independent and the entrepreneurship bug28:14 Peak oil and modern directional drilling32:44 Turning your day job into your business36:54 Career advice and finding the Collide community43:14 Imposter syndrome and the entrepreneur grind45:59 Stumbling into micro turbines at Gastech Milan52:46 Commercializing the tech in Canada1:00:02 Replacing flares with neighborhood power plants1:01:29 What the next 5 to 10 years look like1:06:18 Grid Energy Solutions and what's nexthttps://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/collideai

  7. May 13

    The Path to Autonomous Frac

    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 pitch2:00 Why integrating every service on location wins4:30 Ben's path from Pittsburgh to wireline to digital11:15 Raleigh's jump from computer science to the Eagle Ford17:00 If oil and gas stops, the world stops19:30 Pittsburgh, the shale boom, and incoming data centers21:30 Completions 10123:30 The EOS platform and Vertex automated pump control27:00 Earning trust from veteran hands on new software32:00 Generative AI versus agentic AI in the field34:00 Diesel, natural gas, and electric frac fleets41:30 Colorado School of Mines and the next generation44:00 The road to a fully autonomous well site46:30 The 80 percent AI failure rule debatehttps://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/collideai

  8. May 6

    The Renewable Energy Hiding 4,000 Feet Below The Ocean

    Dan Grech, Founder and CEO of Global OTEC, swung by from London to break down ocean thermal energy conversion, a technology that turns the ocean's heat into 24/7 baseload power. Jacob asks the dumb questions about warm surface water meeting cold deep water, why Jimmy Carter is the unsung hero of ocean energy, how OTEC stacks up against offshore wind and Peter Thiel's new wave bet, and why Hawaii and the Caribbean might lead the way. 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. 00:00 Welcome Dan, tacos, and OTC week in Houston01:20 From luxury fashion to ocean energy08:45 What OTEC actually is12:15 Coastal versus offshore deployments16:00 From Jules Verne to Jimmy Carter19:20 Why ocean energy isn't sexy yet21:00 Peter Thiel's wave energy bet26:15 Offshore wind, solar, and dumb questions33:00 DeepStar and working with the majors35:54 Reinvented submarines and crossover tech37:00 Energy mix futures and Hawaii pilots40:25 Collaborators, no enemies42:20 Five-year ocean predictionhttps://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/collideai

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Welcome to Energy 101 with Julie McLelland and Jacob Stiller. Join us on our mission to help raise the world's energy IQ.

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