What we do

The competition,
and our role in it.

01The Competition
02What We Do
03The Team
04Our Team

01/The CompetitionExternal

An international student drilling-rig competition.

SPE Drillbotics, run by the Society of Petroleum Engineers' DSATS committee, challenges university teams to design, build, and operate a miniature autonomous drilling rig from scratch.

Teams must drill a directional well through a sealed rock sample with no human intervention. The rig is required to interpret surface and downhole measurements in real time and use them to make trajectory and weight-on-bit decisions on the fly.

View the full competition

Competition Guidelines

01Autonomous OperationNo human input from spud to TD.Required
02Directional WellPre-set target, scored on path accuracy.Scored
03Real-Time SensingSurface + downhole feedback into control loop.Required
04Multidisciplinary TeamPETE · MECH · ELEN · CSCE · DATA.Encouraged

2026 – 27 TimelineAwaiting Schedule

TBD / confirmed in fall semesterKickoff · Design Review · Build · Competition

Phase dates, design-review deadlines, and the on-site competition window are published by SPE / DSATS each fall. This block will be populated once the official 2026–27 schedule is released.

02/What We DoInternal

We build the rig (nearly) end to end.

While we outsource the machining and components, the research, assembly, and testing happen right here at A&M.

Our team is built to be interdisciplinary. Mechanical engineers handle the frame, drillstring, and hydraulics. The electrical team manages the sensor stack and firmware. Our algorithms team runs the machine learning and control systems that tie the whole rig together.

Keeping the core work on campus means we can iterate quickly. We troubleshoot issues together in person, which helps us refine the hardware and software in real time.

We are training a new group of engineers who understand how autonomy, data, and hardware work together in the oil and gas industry. Our members graduate with hands-on experience across all three fields.

Build · Subsystems

AMechanicalHydraulics, bit manufacturing. Plexiglass enclosure, safety report, activation light, hydraulic systems, E-stop. Dolly frame, structural assembly.3 sub-teams
BElectricalSensors, motors/drivers, electronics box. Embedded C firmware (STM32), ML interfacing, PID control algorithms.2 sub-teams
CAlgorithmDedicated ML compute hardware, CUDA pipeline. Sensor fusion, analytics. Model development (PyTorch, TensorFlow).3 sub-teams
DOperationsSponsor outreach and retention, industry relationships, and team finance. Brand identity, social media, content production, and outreach campaigns.2 sub-teams

Posture · 2026 SeasonIn Build

The rig is mid-cycle. The hoist / elevator subsystem is operational; drivetrain bring-up is next. Sensor array, control software, and the autonomy stack are tracking against the 2026–27 competition window.

HOW IT WORKS

Browse the team like a filesystem.

Tap any subteam below to see what they work on. The terminal also takes commands — tree shows the whole team at once, help lists what else you can type. ↑ / ↓ for history.

CLICK A CHIP TO EXPLORE10 SUBTEAMS

START

SUBTEAMS

tamu-drillbotics — zsh — team-explorerCONNECTED

TAMU DRILLBOTICS® · TEAM EXPLORER · v0.2

──────────────────────────────────────────────────────────

Browse the team like a filesystem. 10 subteams across 4 parent groups.

Try: tree · cat drillstring · help

drillbotics@rig-02 ~$ tree

teams/

├── mechanical/

│ ├── drillstring # hydraulics, bit manufacturing

│ ├── safety # enclosure, E-stop, hydraulic systems, safety report

│ └── frame # dolly frame, structural assembly

├── electrical/

│ ├── electronics # sensors, motors / drivers, electronics box

│ └── software # embedded C firmware (STM32), ML interface, PID control

├── algorithm/

│ ├── gpu # dedicated ML compute hardware, CUDA pipeline

│ ├── data # sensor fusion, analytics

│ └── ml # model development (PyTorch, TensorFlow)

└── operations/

├── sponsorship # sponsor outreach, relations, finance, budget

└── marketing # brand, social media, content, advertising

drillbotics@rig-02 ~$

type a command, or click a chip above…

§ 02 · OUR TEAM

LEADERSHIP

The people behind the rig.

Meet the leads driving design, fabrication, software, and operations for the 2025–26 competition season.

Photo

Jacob Pekala

President & Mechanical Lead

As a senior petroleum engineering student and president of the Texas A&M Drillbotics team, I oversee both the technical and business development efforts that keep our team moving forward. Currently, we are focused on manufacturing components for our drilling rig, expanding our sponsor network, and broadening our reach through outreach activities.

Team Leads

Shivam Sharma
Algorithm Lead
Andres Gumucio
Embedded Software Lead
Photo
Tej Nagasamudra
Electronics Lead
Ayden Alvarez
Hydraulics Lead
Photo
Sammy
Treasury & Relations Chair
Photo
TBD
Marketing Lead

Total Members17.

The competition,
and our role in it.

An international student drilling-rig competition.

We build the rig (nearly) end to end.

Browse the team like a filesystem.

The people behind the rig.

See what we're building.

Ready to build?