AI Automation Index

Will AI Replace Electrical Engineers?

Task-level automation exposure for Electrical Engineers: 22 O*NET tasks scored against their work activities, plus the simulator.

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Automation Exposure

45% weighted task index

22 of 22 tasks scored

Median Salary

$120,630 / year

BLS OEWS, May 2025 — this exact occupation

Employment Level

High

198,750 people hold this job — size, not growth

Projected 2025–35

+9.9% employment change

11,400 openings a year · BLS line item

Pay by state

BLS OEWS publishes 51 state estimates for this occupation. Each is its own survey estimate, not the national median adjusted for local prices.

$64,190 – $158,520

Highest medians

New Mexico $158,520

California $144,040

District of Columbia $143,000

New Hampshire $135,710

Washington $132,710

Lowest medians

Guam $64,190

Puerto Rico $74,250

Montana $87,360

Arkansas $96,860

South Carolina $98,440

State figures come from the 17-2071 row in the May 2025 state panel. States where the estimate was suppressed or too small to publish are absent.

What the score is made of

Each task is mapped to its work activities, scored for AI automation potential, and weighted by how important those activities are to the job. These are the components.

Automation potential 45%

Importance-weighted mean of the scored tasks. This is the headline index.

Physical work 6%

Share of weighted tasks in hands-on or machine-operating work activities.

Judgment & influence 53%

Share in analysis, decisions, teaching, directing, advising, or caring for others.

Routine administration 5%

Share in documenting, recording, and administrative activities.

Rewritten by O*NET 0%

Share of weighted tasks O*NET rewrote in a recent update. Reported, not folded into the score.

Consequence of error 30/100 Moderate

O*NET's own rating of how serious an uncorrectable mistake would be here — respondents, not us. Deliberately not in the index: the score measures what AI can do with the task content, and multiplying it by stakes would be our judgment dressed as data.

Constituent Task Mix

22 tasks for this occupation, weighted by work-activity importance. Shares below are of total task weight, not task count.

High exposure (≥ 60% of the task is automatable) 28%

6 tasks

Medium exposure (≥ 35%) 53%

12 tasks

Low exposure (below 35%) 19%

4 tasks

How would you survive?

Move your week away from the high-exposure tasks and toward the ones that need judgment. The simulator recalculates the index as you shift the mix.

Simulate Upskilling →

Constituent Tasks

#1348 · Core · 38% automatable

Design, implement, maintain, or improve electrical instruments, equipment, facilities, components, products, or systems for commercial, industrial, or domestic purposes.

decision support — AI assists structural design; engineer accountable for safety

Design structures or facilities. Design electrical equipment or systems. Maintain electronic equipment.

#1357 · Core · 28% automatable

Oversee project production efforts to assure projects are completed on time and within budget.

interpersonal — Industrial production direction is human supervisory control

Direct industrial production activities.

#1350 · Core · 23% automatable

Direct or coordinate manufacturing, construction, installation, maintenance, support, documentation, or testing activities to ensure compliance with specifications, codes, or customer requirements.

physical manipulation — Directing repair activities involves hands-on equipment work

Direct construction activities. Direct installation activities. Direct equipment maintenance or repair activities.

#1351 · Core · 68% automatable

Perform detailed calculations to compute and establish manufacturing, construction, or installation standards or specifications.

data analysis — Estimates from specs; human validates assumptions and risk

Estimate technical or resource requirements for development or production projects.

#1349 · Core · 35% automatable

Operate computer-assisted engineering or design software or equipment to perform engineering tasks.

physical manipulation — Operating systems requires hands-on interaction

Operate computer systems.

#1347 · Core · 53% automatable

Confer with engineers, customers, or others to discuss existing or potential engineering projects or products.

interpersonal — Conferring with technical staff on plans is relational work

Confer with technical personnel to prepare designs or operational plans. Discuss designs or plans with clients.

#1356 · Core · 30% automatable

Investigate or test vendors' or competitors' products.

physical manipulation — Functional product testing is hands-on

Test products for functionality or quality.

#20731 · Core · 42% automatable

Inspect completed installations and observe operations to ensure conformance to design and equipment specifications and compliance with operational, safety, or environmental standards.

decision support — AI aids process inspection; physical verification is human

Inspect operational processes.

#20730 · Core · 40% automatable

Investigate customer or public complaints to determine the nature and extent of problems.

data analysis — Failure data analysis aided; physical inspection human

Investigate system, equipment, or product failures.

#1358 · Core · 40% automatable

Prepare technical drawings, specifications of electrical systems, or topographical maps to ensure that installation and operations conform to standards and customer requirements.

text generation — Schematics require electrical code compliance and verification

Create electrical schematics.

#1363 · Core · 80% automatable

Compile data and write reports regarding existing or potential electrical engineering studies or projects.

text generation — Generate operational reports from structured data

Prepare operational reports.

#1354 · Core · 68% automatable

Prepare specifications for purchases of materials or equipment.

data analysis — Estimates from specs; human validates assumptions and risk

Estimate technical or resource requirements for development or production projects.

#20729 · Core · 65% automatable

Estimate labor, material, or construction costs for budget preparation purposes.

data analysis — Operational cost estimation from data

Estimate operational costs. Prepare project budgets.

#1353 · Core · 60% automatable

Plan or implement research methodology or procedures to apply principles of electrical theory to engineering projects.

decision support — Protocols drafted; scientific validity human-owned

Devise research or testing protocols.

#1355 · Core · 35% automatable

Supervise or train project team members, as necessary.

interpersonal — Operational procedure training needs live demonstration

Train personnel on proper operational procedures. Supervise engineering or other technical personnel.

#1361 · Core · 45% automatable

Assist in developing capital project programs for new equipment or major repairs.

decision support — AI assists electrical design; licensed engineer accountable

Design electrical equipment or systems.

#1364 · Supplemental · 39% automatable

Collect data relating to commercial or residential development, population, or power system interconnection to determine operating efficiency of electrical systems.

data analysis — Efficiency metrics are digital and analyzable by AI

Collect data about project sites. Monitor the productivity or efficiency of industrial operations.

#19618 · Supplemental · 35% automatable

Develop systems that produce electricity with renewable energy sources, such as wind, solar, or biofuels.

decision support — AI assists system design; engineering and site validation human

Design alternative energy systems.

#23956 · Supplemental · 61% automatable

Develop software to control electrical systems.

text generation — Code generation strong; human architects and reviews

Develop software or computer applications. Develop software or applications for scientific or technical use. Design control systems for mechanical or other equipment.

#19619 · Supplemental · 38% automatable

Integrate electrical systems with renewable energy systems to improve overall efficiency.

decision support — AI assists efficiency design; physical engineering human

Design energy-efficient equipment or systems.

#1365 · Supplemental · 18% automatable

Conduct field surveys or study maps, graphs, diagrams, or other data to identify and correct power system problems.

situated mobility — Field survey of land/water bodies

Survey land or bodies of water to measure or determine features.

#19617 · Supplemental · 38% automatable

Design electrical systems or components that minimize electric energy requirements, such as lighting systems designed to account for natural lighting.

decision support — AI assists efficiency design; physical engineering human

Design energy-efficient equipment or systems.

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Community Sentiment

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Method

How this was scored

1. Tasks. O*NET task statements for this occupation, from a release whose newest record is dated 08/2026.
2. Work activities. Each task maps to 1–5 Detailed Work Activities; each activity belongs to one of 41 Generalized Work Activities that O*NET rates for importance (1–5) in this occupation.
3. Automation potential. Every work activity carries one score for how far current AI can perform it end-to-end. Tasks inherit the mean of their activities.
4. Weighting. Task weight = 0.35 + 0.65 × (importance − 1)/4, scaled by how often the task is performed and by 0.7 for Supplemental tasks. Importance is the task's own O*NET rating where it exists (18,369 of 18,838 tasks); the rest inherit their work activities' importance. The index is the weighted mean.

Check: across the 910 occupations where O*NET also rates how far machine speed sets the pace, this index moves opposite to it (Spearman ρ = -0.49). The more a job is paced by equipment, the less of its task content AI can address — the relationship you would expect if the scoring is working.

Sources · O*NET 31.0 (task records to 08/2026) · BLS OEWS May 2025 · BLS projections 2025-2035 · rubric v2.1 · tasks for O*NET, not a forecast

See the full method →

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