Will AI replace Service Unit Operators, Oil and Gas?
AI reaches little of this job’s work.
15/100
Low exposure
More exposed to AI than 28% of US workers.
- AI already used in
- 0% of the work
- As AI tools mature: up to
- 23% of the work
What the job involves
Operate equipment to increase oil flow from producing wells or to remove stuck pipe, casing, tools, or other obstructions from drilling wells. Includes fishing-tool technicians.
Where AI reaches the work
The job’s main tasks, heaviest first, by how far AI reaches them.
Within reach(4)
- Prepare reports of services rendered, tools used, or time required, for billing purposes.
- Confer with others to gather information regarding pipe or tool sizes or borehole conditions in wells.
- Listen to engines, rotary chains, or other equipment to detect faulty operations or unusual well conditions.
- Monitor sound wave-generating or detecting mechanisms to determine well fluid levels.
Out of reach(15)
- Maintain and perform safety inspections on equipment and tools.
- Operate controls that raise derricks or level rigs.
- Operate pumps that circulate water, oil, or other fluids through wells to remove sand or other materials obstructing the free flow of oil.
- Close and seal wells no longer in use.
- Interpret instrument readings to ascertain the depth of obstruction.
and 10 more
Also called
Oil Well Fishing Tool Technician · Reverse Unit Operator · Rig Operator · Service Operator · Tool Pusher · Well Servicing Rig Operator · Wireline Operator · Fishing Tool Operator
Related jobs
What these numbers mean
The score is the share of this job’s work, weighted by how important and frequent each task is, that AI could do in half the time: tasks an AI model could do alone count in full, tasks that need software built on AI count half.
“AI already used” is the share of the work in tasks where people are recorded using AI today. “As AI tools mature” counts every task AI could halve, with or without extra software.
The percentile compares the score with every job’s, weighted by how many people in the US do each one. Exposure means AI could change how the work is done, not that the job goes away. These are estimates for the typical job, not predictions.
Sources
- O*NET 31.0 Database, U.S. Department of Labor, Employment and Training Administration
- GPTs are GPTs: Labor market impact potential of LLMs (task labels), Eloundou, Manning, Mishkin & Rock (2023), OpenAI and University of Pennsylvania
- Anthropic Economic Index: labor market impacts (task penetration), Anthropic
- Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, May 2025 (national and metropolitan areas), U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics