Audio and Video Technicians
Set up, maintain, and dismantle audio and video equipment, such as microphones, sound speakers, connecting wires and cables, sound and mixing boards, video cameras, video monitors and servers, and related electronic equipment for live or recorded events, such as concerts, meetings, conventions, presentations, podcasts, news conferences, and sporting events.
70,230 people do this job in the US. $58,100 a year.
of the working time. Estimate.
- 54%
- 9%
- 37%
Measured, from Anthropic's usage data (2025). Counts help on part of a task.
On the chosen pace and reliability. Estimate.
Share of the working time within reach, now to 2030
What each choice means: , , , , . Every pace starts from .
At this date and pace, models finish tasks up to 4.4 h long four times in five.
How far this has come
With GPT-4, measured in March 2023, 0% of this job's working time was within reach at . With Claude 3.7 Sonnet, measured in February 2025, 0%. With Claude Mythos Preview (early), measured in April 2026, 20%. Today's estimate: 25%.
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.
The tasks
Sorted by . 29 tasks from .
| Task | Kind | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Record and edit audio material, such as movie soundtracks, using audio recording and editing equipment.Done more than yearly by most who do it. | 15% | 3.3 h50 min to 1.3 work days | 25%Half by Mar 2027 | |
| Diagnose and resolve media system problems.Done more than weekly by most who do it. | 9% | 1.7 h25 min to 4.2 h | Stays with people | |
| Direct and coordinate activities of assistants and other personnel during production.Done more than monthly by most who do it. | 8% | 1.3 h25 min to 3.3 h | Stays with people | |
| Install, adjust, and operate electronic equipment to record, edit, and transmit radio and television programs, motion pictures, video conferencing, or multimedia presentations.Done more than weekly by most who do it. | 7% | 2.5 h50 min to 6.7 h | Stays with people | |
| Plan and develop pre-production ideas into outlines, scripts, story boards, and graphics, using own ideas or specifications of assignments.Done more than yearly by most who do it. | 7% | 6.7 h1.7 h to 2.5 work days | 8%Half by Sep 2027 | |
| Locate and secure settings, properties, effects, and other production necessities.Done more than monthly by most who do it. | 6% | 2.5 h50 min to 6.7 h | Stays with people | |
| Determine formats, approaches, content, levels, and mediums to effectively meet objectives within budgetary constraints, using research, knowledge, and training.Done more than weekly by most who do it. | 5% | 5 h1.7 h to 1.7 work days | 17%Half by Apr 2027 | |
| Construct and position properties, sets, lighting equipment, and other equipment.Done more than weekly by most who do it. | 5% | 3.3 h50 min to 1.3 work days | Stays with people | |
| Mix and regulate sound inputs and feeds or coordinate audio feeds with television pictures.Done more than weekly by most who do it. | 4% | 1.3 h25 min to 3.3 h | 77%Half by now | |
| Switch sources of video input from one camera or studio to another, from film to live programming, or from network to local programming.Done more than monthly by most who do it. | 4% | 50 min25 min to 2.5 h | 95%Half by now | |
| Design layouts of audio and video equipment and perform upgrades and maintenance.Done more than monthly by most who do it. | 4% | 5 h1.7 h to 1.7 work days | Stays with people | |
| Control the lights and sound of events, such as live concerts, before and after performances, and during intermissions.Done more than weekly by most who do it. | 3% | 1.7 h50 min to 3.3 h | Stays with people |
Within reach, per task: the share of the task's time whose instances are short enough for a model to finish at the chosen date, pace and reliability. Half by: the date half of that time comes within reach.
Jobs that share skills with this one
From O*NET's related occupations. Within reach now and by the end of 2028, long-run pace, four in five.
- Broadcast Technicians26% now, 32% by 2028
- Sound Engineering Technicians10% now, 39% by 2028
- Camera Operators, Television, Video, and Film12% now, 32% by 2028
- Lighting Technicians8% now, 12% by 2028
- Electrical and Electronic Engineering Technologists and Technicians17% now, 49% by 2028
- Audiovisual Equipment Installers and Repairers7% now, 7% by 2028
Where this job works
The industry groups that employ the most of it (BLS, May 2025).
Where the most of these jobs are
The metro areas with the most people in it (BLS, May 2025).