Turning Trash into Tech: The Garbage Company Using AI to Save Millions with Ryan Collins

Ryan Collins calls himself a garbage man, but he's also the Managing Director at Tahoe Truckee Sierra Disposal (TTSD), a third-generation waste collection and recycling company in Northern California. After a stint in Silicon Valley, he came back to join the family business and walked into a world still powered by slide rulers, highlighters, and paper-heavy workflows. Today, his team is building in-house AI tools that are replacing expensive software and solving real operational problems across the business — all with a lean budget, limited tech experience, and a workforce that now regularly pitches their own automation ideas. We talk through how this transformation actually happened. Starting with Excel and a problem-first mindset, Ryan's weekend vibe coding projects grew into a full-on tech capability at TTSD. From saving $30,000 a year with a $75 microcontroller to avoiding six-figure SaaS spends with local AI tools, this episode is packed with practical stories. We also get into the risks of overengineering, how to decide when to bring in real software engineers, and what hiring looks like when you're prioritizing attitude and curiosity over resumes. If you're looking to build a culture of innovation, even in a non-tech industry, this one is worth a listen. Unlock the full potential of your product team with Integral's player coaches, experts in lean, human-centered design. Visit integral.io/convergence for a free Product Success Lab workshop to gain clarity and confidence in tackling any product design or engineering challenge. Inside the episode... Why even garbage truck drivers are suggesting AI tools now How Ryan turned Excel and a tinkering mindset into a culture of problem solving A $75 hardware build that fixed a $30,000-a-year proble Why vibe coding is addictive and how they stay focused on what matters Building in-house AI tools with Whisper, Mistral, and Claude Replacing a $120,000/year call center SaaS with a local tool running on a $2,000 PC How they protect customer data while still using AI internally When to keep iterating and when to bring in a developer What Ryan looks for in tech hires (and why resumes often don't matter) Using AI to bridge the language gap across a mostly Spanish-speaking workforce Mentioned in this episode ESP32 microcontrollers OpenAI Whisper (local speech-to-text) Mistral (local open source LLM) Claude by Anthropic 11Labs (AI voice translation) Google Maps API Upwork Cursor Excel, VBA, Python Pandas Alpha fold  Raptor engine at spaceX Stuff Matters: Exploring the Marvelous Materials That Shape Our Man-Made World by Mark Miodownik Unlock the full potential of your product team with Integral's player coaches, experts in lean, human-centered design. Visit integral.io/convergence for a free Product Success Lab workshop to gain clarity and confidence in tackling any product design or engineering challenge. Subscribe to the Convergence podcast wherever you get podcasts including video episodes to get updated on the other crucial conversations that we'll post on YouTube at youtube.com/@convergencefmpodcast Learn something? Give us a 5 star review and like the podcast on YouTube. It's how we grow.   Follow the Pod Linkedin: https://www.linkedin.com/company/convergence-podcast/ X: https://twitter.com/podconvergence Instagram: @podconvergence