AI Automation Index

Will AI Replace Graphic Designers?

Task-level automation exposure for Graphic Designers: 19 O*NET tasks scored against their work activities, plus the simulator.

E-E-A-T Verified

Developed & audited by Gini Loh

Automation Exposure

58% weighted task index

19 of 19 tasks scored

Median Salary

$62,960 / year

BLS OEWS, May 2025 — this exact occupation

Employment Level

High

197,830 people hold this job — size, not growth

Projected 2025–35

-1.7% employment change

16,000 openings a year · BLS line item

Pay by state

BLS OEWS publishes 53 state estimates for this occupation. Each is its own survey estimate, not the national median adjusted for local prices.

$33,800 – $87,920

Highest medians

District of Columbia $87,920

Rhode Island $78,220

New York $77,340

Massachusetts $76,710

California $75,130

Lowest medians

Guam $33,800

Puerto Rico $34,180

West Virginia $40,350

Wyoming $45,150

Mississippi $45,640

State figures come from the 27-1024 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 58%

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

Physical work 8%

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

Judgment & influence 65%

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

Routine administration 14%

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 5/100 Low

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

19 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) 59%

11 tasks

Medium exposure (≥ 35%) 38%

7 tasks

Low exposure (below 35%) 3%

1 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

#307 · Core · 62% automatable

Key information into computer equipment to create layouts for client or supervisor.

text generation — Layout concepts generated; spatial/physical fit human-checked

Design layout of art or product exhibits, displays, or promotional materials.

#304 · Core · 57% automatable

Review final layouts and suggest improvements, as needed.

visual inspection — Judging aesthetic quality needs human taste

Review art or design materials. Collaborate with others to develop or refine designs.

#300 · Core · 65% automatable

Determine size and arrangement of illustrative material and copy, and select style and size of type.

visual inspection — Produces layouts; print production and brand fit human

Design layouts for print publications.

#306 · Core · 62% automatable

Develop graphics and layouts for product illustrations, company logos, and Web sites.

text generation — Layout concepts generated; spatial/physical fit human-checked

Design layout of art or product exhibits, displays, or promotional materials.

#299 · Core · 62% automatable

Create designs, concepts, and sample layouts, based on knowledge of layout principles and esthetic design concepts.

text generation — Layout concepts generated; spatial/physical fit human-checked

Design layout of art or product exhibits, displays, or promotional materials.

#301 · Core · 60% automatable

Use computer software to generate new images.

visual inspection — Generates CG and animation; art direction and rigging human

Create computer-generated graphics or animation.

#23970 · Core · 38% automatable

Prepare digital files for printing.

text generation — Broad clerical tasks partly automatable, human oversees exceptions

Operate photographic developing or print production equipment. Perform administrative or clerical tasks.

#305 · Core · 48% automatable

Confer with clients to discuss and determine layout design.

interpersonal — Needs elicitation requires human rapport and judgment

Confer with clients to determine needs.

#23971 · Core · 56% automatable

Research the target audience of projects.

data analysis — Market research analysis aided; primary data human

Conduct market research. Collect data about customer needs. Conduct research to inform art, designs, or other work.

#303 · Core · 45% automatable

Draw and print charts, graphs, illustrations, and other artwork, using computer.

visual inspection — AI aids illustrations; precise technical drawing human

Draw detailed or technical illustrations.

#302 · Core · 65% automatable

Mark up, paste, and assemble final layouts to prepare layouts for printer.

visual inspection — Produces layouts; print production and brand fit human

Design layouts for print publications.

#309 · Core · 62% automatable

Study illustrations and photographs to plan presentation of materials, products, or services.

visual inspection — Judging aesthetic quality needs human taste

Review art or design materials.

#15228 · Core · 85% automatable

Maintain archive of images, photos, or previous work products.

data analysis — Maintain files and records in structured systems

Maintain records, documents, or other files.

#310 · Core · 65% automatable

Prepare notes and instructions for workers who assemble and prepare final layouts for printing.

visual inspection — Produces layouts; print production and brand fit human

Design layouts for print publications.

#308 · Core · 49% automatable

Prepare illustrations or rough sketches of material, discussing them with clients or supervisors and making necessary changes.

interpersonal — Iterative design collaboration needs human judgment and presence

Draw detailed or technical illustrations. Collaborate with others to develop or refine designs.

#15229 · Core · 50% automatable

Research new software or design concepts.

information retrieval — Literature scanning aided; hands-on prototyping human

Research new technologies.

#313 · Core · 60% automatable

Produce still and animated graphics for on-air and taped portions of television news broadcasts, using electronic video equipment.

visual inspection — Generates CG and animation; art direction and rigging human

Create computer-generated graphics or animation.

#312 · Supplemental · 18% automatable

Photograph layouts, using camera, to make layout prints for supervisors or clients.

physical manipulation — Camera operation requires physical framing and handling

Operate still or video cameras or related equipment.

#23972 · Supplemental · 77% automatable

Write or edit copy for clients.

text generation — AI edits prose well; human owns voice and final judgment

Edit written materials. Write advertising or promotional material.

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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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