Computer Hardware Engineers
Research, design, develop, or test computer or computer-related equipment for commercial, industrial, military, or scientific use. May supervise the manufacturing and installation of computer or computer-related equipment and components.
76,660 people do this job in the US. $161,740 a year.
of the working time. Estimate.
- 93%
- 6%
- 1%
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, 5%. Today's estimate: 8%.
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 . 18 tasks from .
| Task | Kind | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Design and develop computer hardware and support peripherals, including central processing units (CPUs), support logic, microprocessors, custom integrated circuits, and printers and disk drives.Done more than yearly by most who do it. | 22% | 4.2 work days6.7 h to 4.2 work weeks | 0%Half by May 2029 | |
| Build, test, and modify product prototypes, using working models or theoretical models constructed with computer simulation.Done more than weekly by most who do it. | 21% | 2.1 work days3.3 h to 1.7 work weeks | 1%Half by Sep 2028 | |
| Write detailed functional specifications that document the hardware development process and support hardware introduction.Done more than yearly by most who do it. AI observed on this task. | 12% | 1.7 work days3.3 h to 4.2 work days | 2%Half by Feb 2028 | |
| Test and verify hardware and support peripherals to ensure that they meet specifications and requirements, by recording and analyzing test data.Done more than monthly by most who do it. | 11% | 2.1 work days3.3 h to 1.7 work weeks | 1%Half by Sep 2028 | |
| Monitor functioning of equipment and make necessary modifications to ensure system operates in conformance with specifications.Done daily by most who do it. | 7% | 3.3 h50 min to 2.1 work days | 18%Half by Jul 2027 | |
| Store, retrieve, and manipulate data for analysis of system capabilities and requirements.Done more than weekly by most who do it. AI observed on this task. | 4% | 2.5 h50 min to 1 work day | 40%Half by Dec 2026 | |
| Update knowledge and skills to keep up with rapid advancements in computer technology.Done more than monthly by most who do it. | 4% | 2.5 h50 min to 6.7 h | 46%Half by Oct 2026 | |
| Evaluate factors such as reporting formats required, cost constraints, and need for security restrictions to determine hardware configuration.Done more than monthly by most who do it. | 4% | 5 h1.7 h to 2.1 work days | 15%Half by Jun 2027 | |
| Direct technicians, engineering designers or other technical support personnel as needed.Done more than weekly by most who do it. | 3% | 1.3 h25 min to 3.3 h | Stays with people | |
| Confer with engineering staff and consult specifications to evaluate interface between hardware and software and operational and performance requirements of overall system.Done more than weekly by most who do it. | 3% | 1.7 h38 min to 5 h | Stays with people | |
| Analyze user needs and recommend appropriate hardware.Done more than monthly by most who do it. AI observed on this task. | 2% | 2.5 h50 min to 1 work day | 40%Half by Dec 2026 | |
| Provide technical support to designers, marketing and sales departments, suppliers, engineers and other team members throughout the product development and implementation process.Done more than monthly by most who do it. | 2% | 1.7 h25 min to 6.7 h | 43%Half by Nov 2026 |
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.
- Electronics Engineers, Except Computer5% now, 52% by 2028
- Electrical and Electronic Engineering Technologists and Technicians17% now, 49% by 2028
- Microsystems Engineers1% now, 36% by 2028
- Software Developers11% now, 63% by 2028
- Robotics Technicians11% now, 26% by 2028
- Mechatronics Engineers4% now, 51% 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).