Skip to content
STRATUSWORKFORCE SCAN
Menu

Bioinformatics Scientists

Conduct research using bioinformatics theory and methods in areas such as pharmaceuticals, medical technology, biotechnology, computational biology, proteomics, computer information science, biology and medical informatics. May design databases and develop algorithms for processing and analyzing genomic information, or other biological information.

$98,920 a year (for the broader BLS group this job sits in).

now
5%

of the working time. Estimate.

Kinds of work
  • 94%
  • 6%
  • 0%
25%

Measured, from Anthropic's usage data (2025). Counts help on part of a task.

Half the desk work within reach
August 2028

On the chosen pace and reliability. Estimate.

Share of the working time within reach, now to 2030

0%25%50%75%100%2027202820292030NowDesk work: 94% of the time
Chosen to Ceiling: the share
DateNow
NowEnd of 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, 3%. Today's estimate: 5%.

0%5%10%2023202420252026GPT-4, March 2023: 0% within reachGPT-4 Turbo (Nov 2023), November 2023: 0% within reachGPT-4o, May 2024: 0% within reachClaude 3.5 Sonnet (June 2024), June 2024: 0% within reacho1-preview, September 2024: 0% within reachClaude 3.5 Sonnet (Oct 2024), October 2024: 0% within reacho1, December 2024: 0% within reachClaude 3.7 Sonnet, February 2025: 0% within reacho3, April 2025: 0% within reachGPT-5, August 2025: 0% within reachGemini 3 Pro, November 2025: 0% within reachClaude Opus 4.5, November 2025: 0% within reachGPT-5.2, December 2025: 0% within reachClaude Opus 4.6, February 2026: 0% within reachClaude Mythos Preview (early), April 2026: 3% within reachToday (estimate), September 2026: 5% within reach
Each step is a new best model measured by METR, four in five; the dashed end is today's estimate. Point at a dot for the model.

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 . 20 tasks from .

TaskKind
Compile data for use in activities, such as gene expression profiling, genome annotation, or structural bioinformatics.Done hourly or more by most who do it. 10%5 h1.7 h to 2.5 work days14%Half by Jul 2027
Analyze large molecular datasets, such as raw microarray data, genomic sequence data, or proteomics data, for clinical or basic research purposes.Done daily by most who do it. 10%2.1 work days3.3 h to 1.4 work weeks1%Half by Aug 2028
Communicate research results through conference presentations, scientific publications, or project reports.Done more than yearly by most who do it. 10%2.1 work days3.3 h to 1.4 work weeks1%Half by Aug 2028
Create novel computational approaches and analytical tools as required by research goals.Done more than monthly by most who do it. 10%4.2 work days6.7 h to 3.5 work weeks0%Half by Apr 2029
Design and apply bioinformatics algorithms including unsupervised and supervised machine learning, dynamic programming, or graphic algorithms.Done daily by most who do it. AI observed on this task.10%4.2 work days6.7 h to 3.3 work weeks0%Half by Apr 2029
Develop new software applications or customize existing applications to meet specific scientific project needs.Done more than weekly by most who do it. AI observed on this task.10%4.2 work days6.7 h to 3.3 work weeks0%Half by Apr 2029
Develop data models and databases.Done more than weekly by most who do it. AI observed on this task.10%4.2 work days6.7 h to 2.5 work weeks0%Half by Jan 2029
Provide statistical and computational tools for biologically based activities, such as genetic analysis, measurement of gene expression, or gene function determination.Done daily by most who do it. 7%6.7 h1.7 h to 2.1 work days9%Half by Aug 2027
Manipulate publicly accessible, commercial, or proprietary genomic, proteomic, or post-genomic databases.Done more than yearly by most who do it. AI observed on this task.3%3.3 h50 min to 2.1 work days18%Half by Jul 2027
Improve user interfaces to bioinformatics software and databases.Done more than monthly by most who do it. 3%1.7 work days1.7 h to 1 work week2%Half by Sep 2028
Create or modify web-based bioinformatics tools.Done more than yearly by most who do it. AI observed on this task.3%2.5 work days3.3 h to 1.7 work weeks1%Half by Nov 2028
Consult with researchers to analyze problems, recommend technology-based solutions, or determine computational strategies.Done daily by most who do it. AI observed on this task.2%1.7 h25 min to 3.3 hStays 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.

Where this job works

The industry groups that employ the most of it (BLS, May 2025). Counts are for the broader BLS group this job sits in.

Where the most of these jobs are

The metro areas with the most people in it (BLS, May 2025). Counts are for the broader BLS group this job sits in.