Industry group, 6215
Medical and Diagnostic Laboratories
309,310 people work in this industry in the US, at mean pay of $78,200 a year (BLS, May 2025). What follows is how much of their working time the best AI models could finish, when, and in which jobs and tasks. Estimates.
of the paid hours. Now is projected from METR's April 2026 measurement and Epoch's November 2026 index.
a year: 217 million hours at what they cost. Not a forecast of savings.
- 41%
- 19%
- 40%
of the paid hours are within reach now in tasks people already bring to Claude. Another 25% is within reach in tasks not yet seen there.
Across the US: 30% within reach now and 36% by the end of 2028, on the long-run pace at four in five. Now is projected from METR's April 2026 measurement and Epoch's November 2026 index.
Share of the paid hours within reach, now to 2030
Change assumptionsHide assumptionsLong-run pace, four in five
What each choice means: , , , , . Every pace starts from .
What handing the work over would take
For the 286,470 people in jobs so far, 93% of the industry's people; the others are in the totals above and join this split as the review reaches their jobs. Shares of their working time within reach now, at the pace and reliability chosen above. Estimates. Now is projected from METR's April 2026 measurement and Epoch's November 2026 index.
about 107 million hours a year. The material can be handed to a model and the result handed back.
about 88 million hours a year. The model has to be connected to the system the work lives in.
about 41 million hours a year. Short enough by length. This site leaves conversation with people, so it is not in the totals.
What their work is made of
- 24%
- 15%
- 8%
- 11%
- 41%
Each task's time split among five kinds of doing, judged one task at a time; only documents and systems can count as within reach.
What changes for the people
For the 286,470 people in jobs reviewed task by task so far, by the end of 2028 on the long-run pace at four in five: the shares of their working time, from each job page's own map, weighted by how many people here do that job. It says which parts of the work change, never whether anyone keeps a job. Estimates.
Conversation, in-person and hands-on work.
Desk work within reach in tasks where a mistake costs something or a licensed person signs.
Desk work within reach that is small if wrong, with lighter checks.
What most people here would learn first
How many of them have each skill among the first two things to learn on their job's page. Every state, and the US
- The hands-on craft173,132 (60%)
- Judgment where errors are severe172,525 (60%)
- Reviewing work you did not do yourself97,428 (34%)
- Briefing a model and checking its drafts62,558 (22%)
- Running AI inside the business systems45,140 (16%)
- The conversations12,212 (4%)
- Dealing with people outside the organization5,800 (2%)
- Signing off under your license3,065 (1%)
- Handling protected records410 (under 1%)
How far this has come
With GPT-4, measured in March 2023, 0% of this industry's paid hours were within reach at . With Claude 3.7 Sonnet, measured in February 2025, 3%. With Claude Mythos Preview (early), measured in April 2026, 25%. Today's estimate: 34%.
A backcast: today's task data with the best model METR had measured by each date. It shows how fast the models have moved, not what anyone forecast at the time.
Robots and the physical work
Anthropic rates 49% of the working time of the people in this industry as physical work. For 38% of the working time, a robot has been shown doing most of the task somewhere: 24% in a purpose-built cell, 14% in a structured facility. 0.52 of 3.
- Not physical 51%
- No robot shown 11%
- In a purpose-built cell 24%
- In a structured facility 14%
Anthropic's rating, not this site's estimate: Claude Opus 5, searching the web, rated each physical O*NET task by the kind of setting in which a robot it could cite (deployed, sold or demonstrated) does most of the task, weighted by its own estimate of each task's share of the time (What work can robots do?, September 30, 2026, data CC BY 4.0; every job ranked). A robot shown somewhere is not a robot in your building: cost, setup and safety decide that. The share within reach on this page still counts no body work. Weighted by the people in each occupation; each job's page names the robot behind each rated task.
Where the hours are
Jobs by hours within reach now. Now is projected from METR's April 2026 measurement and Epoch's November 2026 index. The 40 largest jobs hold 89% of the people.
| People | Pay here | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Medical Secretaries and Administrative Assistants | 15,540 | 84% | 27 million | $44K |
| Medical and Clinical Laboratory Technologists | 32,990 | 24% | 17 million | $58K |
| Customer Service Representatives | 9,830 | 64% | 13 million | $46K |
| Medical and Clinical Laboratory Technicians | 32,990 | 17% | 12 million | $58K |
| Phlebotomists | 47,610 | 12% | 12 million | $47K |
| Radiologic Technologists and Technicians | 17,270 | 27% | 9.7 million | $78K |
| Magnetic Resonance Imaging Technologists | 7,310 | 62% | 9.4 million | $94K |
| Billing and Posting Clerks | 4,540 | 85% | 8 million | $48K |
| Sales Representatives of Services, Except Advertising, Insurance, Financial Services, and Travel | 6,140 | 59% | 7.5 million | $89K |
| Diagnostic Medical Sonographers | 9,850 | 32% | 6.6 million | $88K |
| Medical and Health Services Managers | 8,220 | 31% | 5.2 million | $123K |
| Receptionists and Information Clerks | 3,830 | 60% | 4.7 million | $39K |
People: BLS counts for this industry, May 2025. Pay here: the median paid for the job in this industry, else its mean, else the national median. 144 smaller jobs (34,140 people) count in every total but are not listed. Task data covers 99% of the industry's people; the rest are in BLS "all other" groups with no task list, or in counts BLS does not publish.
The tasks with the most hours within reach by the end of 2028
Across the whole industry, on the chosen pace and reliability.
- Develop, standardize, evaluate, or modify procedures, techniques, or tests used in the analysis of specimens or in medical laboratory experiments.Medical and Clinical Laboratory Technologists7.4 million hours60% of the task within reach
- Perform bookkeeping duties, such as credits or collections, preparing and sending financial statements or bills, and keeping financial records.Medical Secretaries and Administrative Assistants6.2 million hours100% of the task within reach
- Establish or monitor quality assurance programs or activities to ensure the accuracy of laboratory results.Medical and Clinical Laboratory Technologists5.7 million hours100% of the task within reach
- Document route of specimens from collection to laboratory analysis and diagnosis.Phlebotomists4.9 million hours100% of the task within reach
- Analyze laboratory findings to check the accuracy of the results.Medical and Clinical Laboratory Technologists4.5 million hours100% of the task within reach
- Analyze and record test data to issue reports that use charts, graphs, or narratives.Medical and Clinical Laboratory Technicians4.1 million hours100% of the task within reach
- Analyze the results of tests or experiments to ensure conformity to specifications, using special mechanical or electrical devices.Medical and Clinical Laboratory Technicians3.7 million hours50% of the task within reach
- Enter patient, specimen, insurance, or billing information into computer.Phlebotomists3.6 million hours100% of the task within reach
- Operate office equipment, such as voice mail messaging systems, and use word processing, spreadsheet, or other software applications to prepare reports, invoices, financial statements, letters, case histories, or medical records.Medical Secretaries and Administrative Assistants3.5 million hours100% of the task within reach
- Operate magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) scanners.Magnetic Resonance Imaging Technologists3.2 million hours100% of the task within reach
Scan a typical company in this industry
The industry's largest jobs, in the proportions BLS counts across the whole industry, at the pay it pays, run through the company scan. A starting point before you have a roster, or a benchmark for the one you have. Or choose the whole industry: every occupation BLS publishes for it with task data, at its nationwide headcount, the sector report ($249 for the full report, or included in Pro).
Next to this industry
Within reach now and by the end of 2028, long-run pace, four in five. Now is projected from METR's April 2026 measurement and Epoch's November 2026 index.
- Offices of Physicians2,936,460 people44% now, 48% by 2028
- Home Health Care Services1,789,480 people19% now, 21% by 2028
- Offices of Other Health Practitioners1,305,160 people39% now, 42% by 2028
- Outpatient Care Centers1,182,730 people39% now, 44% by 2028
- Offices of Dentists1,054,930 people37% now, 39% by 2028
- Other Ambulatory Health Care Services369,130 people26% now, 32% by 2028
How it is built: BLS counts the people in each job in this industry; each job's tasks and their lengths give its share within reach at a date; the industry's share is those shares weighted by people. Value is pay times 1.43 for benefits and payroll costs. Seen in Claude use splits today's share by whether Anthropic saw people bring each task to Claude in 2025; other AI tools are not counted. How it works
Questions about this industry
- How much of the work in Medical and Diagnostic Laboratories is within reach of AI now?
- An estimated 34% of the paid hours in Medical and Diagnostic Laboratories are within reach of AI models now and 41% by the end of 2028, on METR's long-run pace at four in five (39% to 41% across the three paces the site shows). Within reach means a model could finish work that long at that reliability. It is not a forecast of jobs lost or of savings.
- Which jobs in Medical and Diagnostic Laboratories carry the most hours within reach?
- By hours within reach now (projected from METR's April 2026 measurement and Epoch's November 2026 index): Medical Secretaries and Administrative Assistants (15,540 people, 84% of their time, about 27 million hours a year); Medical and Clinical Laboratory Technologists (32,990 people, 24% of their time, about 17 million hours a year); and Customer Service Representatives (9,830 people, 64% of their time, about 13 million hours a year).
- Which tasks in Medical and Diagnostic Laboratories carry the most hours within reach by the end of 2028?
- Develop, standardize, evaluate, or modify procedures, techniques, or tests used in the analysis of specimens or in medical laboratory experiments (Medical and Clinical Laboratory Technologists, about 7.4 million hours a year); Perform bookkeeping duties, such as credits or collections, preparing and sending financial statements or bills, and keeping financial records (Medical Secretaries and Administrative Assistants, about 6.2 million hours a year); and Establish or monitor quality assurance programs or activities to ensure the accuracy of laboratory results (Medical and Clinical Laboratory Technologists, about 5.7 million hours a year).
- What would people working in Medical and Diagnostic Laboratories learn first?
- Among the 286,470 people in jobs reviewed task by task, the skills most often among the first two things to learn on their job's page are the hands-on craft (173,132 people); judgment where errors are severe (172,525 people); and reviewing work you did not do yourself (97,428 people). By the end of 2028 on the long-run pace at four in five, about 60% of their working time stays with people, 33% becomes checking a model's work and 6% can be handed over with lighter checks. It says which parts of the work change, never whether anyone keeps a job.
- How is this estimated?
- BLS counts the people in each occupation in Medical and Diagnostic Laboratories (May 2025); each occupation's share of working time within reach comes from its O*NET tasks, each with an estimated length checked against GDPval, and METR's measurements of how long a task the best AI models can finish, carried forward to the date from the latest, Claude Mythos Preview (early) in April 2026. The industry's share is those shares weighted by people. Task data covers 99% of its people, and 93% are in occupations reviewed task by task. Data checked November 10, 2026.
Embed these figures on your site
A small card with the share of working time within reach now and at the end of 2027, 2028 and 2030, the date and a link back. Free under CC BY 4.0; the card carries the credit.