Cooks, Restaurant
In short: today's best AI models could do about 6% of this job's working time (projected from METR's April 2026 measurement and Epoch's November 2026 index) if the work were set up for them, and about the same by the end of 2028 if progress keeps its long-run pace. The conversations, in-person and hands-on work, about 94% of the time, stays with people.
Prepare, season, and cook dishes such as soups, meats, vegetables, or desserts in restaurants. May order supplies, keep records and accounts, price items on menu, or plan menu.
1,409,890 people do this job in the US. $37,390 a year.
Reviewed on September 30, 2026: what each task is made of, and what handing it over would ask.
A typical 40-hour week
- AI could take on0 h
- A person checks AI's work2 h
- Desk work AI can't do yet0 h
- Stays with people38 h
Cooks, Restaurant, now: of a 40-hour week, AI could take on 0 hours, 2 hours become checking its work, 0 hours are desk work it can't do yet, and 38 hours stay with people.
The largest pieces: Estimate needs and order supplies (about 1 h, a person checks); Plan menus with supervisors (under an hour, a person checks); Keep records and accounts (under an hour).
Estimates for a typical week of this job, if progress keeps its long-run pace, counting work the best models finish four times in five. Every task is below.
of the working time. Now is projected from METR's April 2026 measurement and Epoch's November 2026 index.
- 4%
- 2%
- 0%
- 17%
- 77%
of the work: Anthropic's measure of what people already bring to Claude at work (2025). It counts help with part of a task, so it can be higher than the share within reach.
On the chosen pace and reliability. Estimate.
Share of the working time within reach, now to 2030
Change assumptionsHide assumptionsLong-run pace, four in five
What each choice means: , , , , . Every pace starts from .
At this date and pace, models finish tasks up to 2.4 work days long four times in five.
What handing it over would take, now
The 6% within reach splits by what a model would need. The dates, pace and reliability follow the controls above. Estimates.
of the working time. The material can be handed to a model and the result handed back.
of the working time. The model has to be connected to the system the work lives in.
is conversation short enough by length. This site leaves conversation with people, so it is not in the total.
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: 6%.
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.
Measured use over time
Of the Claude.ai conversations Anthropic sampled and tied to a work task, no reportable share went to this job's tasks in May 2026; 0 of its 20 tasks showed up. Within each of Anthropic's methods, never across a change: 0.14% to 0.086% (released February and March 2025); 0.069% to 0.1% (August 2025 to February 2026).
Each release
| Conversations | Share | Rank | Tasks seen |
|---|---|---|---|
| Released February 2025 | 0.14% | 120 of 708 | 4 of 20 |
| Released March 2025 | 0.086% | 176 of 703 | 4 of 20 |
| The week of Aug 4, 2025 (released September 2025) | 0.069% | 194 of 655 | 4 of 20 |
| The week of Nov 13, 2025 (released January 2026) | 0.061% | 219 of 672 | 4 of 20 |
| The week of Feb 5, 2026 (released March 2026) | 0.1% | 155 of 677 | 5 of 20 |
| April 2026 (released June 2026) | none | n/a | 0 of 20 |
| May 2026 (released June 2026) | none | n/a | 0 of 20 |
Measured, not estimated: Anthropic's samples of Claude.ai conversations, each tied by a model to an O*NET task, from the Anthropic Economic Index. It says where Claude's use goes, not how much of this job's working time it covers, so it is not on the same scale as the reach above. The releases differ in their sample, their classifier and the smallest share they report (the June 2026 file rounds each task to a hundredth of a percent, so a smaller task reads as none), which is why a change of method starts a new line. At least 96% of each older release's task-tied use matched this site's tasks, and all of the newest. Claude.ai only, so use through other tools and other companies' models is not in it. Every job ranked.
Robots and the physical work
Anthropic rates 92% of this job's working time as physical work. For 89% of the working time, a robot has been shown doing most of the task somewhere: 89% in a purpose-built cell. 0.89 of 3, the 182nd highest of the 923 jobs.
- Not physical 8%
- No robot shown 3%
- In a purpose-built cell 89%
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. The robot behind each rated task is under the task below.
What changes for the people in this job
From the task-by-task review, by the end of 2028 on the long-run pace at four in five. It says which parts of the work stay with people and which change, not whether anyone keeps a job: that depends on decisions no data set can see.
What stays with people
94% of the working time: the conversation, in-person and hands-on parts of the tasks.
- Supervise kitchen staff, the in-person work, 15%
- Inspect and clean preparation areas, the hands-on work, 9%
- Season and cook food, the hands-on work, 8%
- Cover for other cooks in a rush, the hands-on work, 8%
- Bake, roast, broil and steam, the hands-on work, 8%
- Portion, plate and garnish food, the hands-on work, 8%
What becomes checking the machine
5% of the working time: desk work a model could do by then, in tasks where a mistake costs something or a licensed person signs. A person checks it. Another 1% is desk work that is small if wrong, which can be handed over with lighter checks.
- Estimate needs and order supplies, costly if wrong, 3%
- Plan menus with supervisors, costly if wrong, 1%
- Plan and price menu items, costly if wrong, 1.0%
What to learn
- The hands-on craft. About 77% of the time is hands-on work, which no model here does; robots are rated separately on this page.
- The conversations. About 17% of the time is conversation and in-person work, which this site leaves with people: listening, explaining, persuading, calming.
- Reviewing work you did not do yourself. The tasks under What becomes checking the machine, where a mistake costs something, stay a person's to check: spotting what a draft gets wrong is a skill of its own.
Your own version of this job: read it against your job description. The headline is free; the full personal report, every task with its timeline and what to learn, is $19 (a sample).
The tasks
Sorted by . 20 tasks from .
| Task | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Coordinate and supervise work of kitchen staff.Leading a crew in the kitchen.Done hourly or more by most who do it. | 15% | 1.3 h25 min to 3.3 h | In person 100% | Stays with people |
| Inspect and clean food preparation areas, such as equipment, work surfaces, and serving areas, to ensure safe and sanitary food-handling practices.Cleaning by hand.Done hourly or more by most who do it. Robots: in a purpose-built cell, SCCRUB (Northeastern University) (demonstrated). Anthropic's rating. | 9% | 25 min13 min to 50 min | Hands-on 100% | Stays with people |
| Season and cook food according to recipes or personal judgment and experience.Cooking by hand.Done hourly or more by most who do it. Robots: in a purpose-built cell, Alpha Grill (Aniai) (deployed). Anthropic's rating. | 8% | 25 min13 min to 50 min | Hands-on 100% | Stays with people |
| Substitute for or assist other cooks during emergencies or rush periods.Cooking by hand.Done more than monthly by most who do it. Robots: no robot shown. Anthropic's rating. | 8% | 50 min25 min to 2.5 h | Hands-on 100% | Stays with people |
| Bake, roast, broil, and steam meats, fish, vegetables, and other foods.Cooking by hand.Done hourly or more by most who do it. Robots: in a purpose-built cell, Aniai Alpha Grill (deployed). Anthropic's rating. | 8% | 29 min13 min to 1.3 h | Hands-on 100% | Stays with people |
| Portion, arrange, and garnish food, and serve food to waiters or patrons.Plating by hand.Done hourly or more by most who do it. Robots: in a purpose-built cell, Chef+ meal-assembly robot (ChefOS) (sold). Anthropic's rating. | 8% | 17 min8 min to 33 min | Hands-on 100% | Stays with people |
| Bake breads, rolls, cakes, and pastries.Mixing, shaping and baking in the kitchen.Done more than weekly by most who do it. Robots: in a purpose-built cell, Bakisto (FANUC CRX-10iA/L + WIESHEU oven/TrayMotion + Wanzl BakeOff i) (FANUC, WIESHEU, Wanzl) (demonstrated). Anthropic's rating. | 7% | 1.1 h25 min to 2.5 h | Hands-on 100% | Stays with people |
| Wash, peel, cut, and seed fruits and vegetables to prepare them for consumption.Knife work.Done daily by most who do it. Robots: in a purpose-built cell, KRONEN PL 25S / PL 25K industrial potato peeling machine (sold). Anthropic's rating. | 5% | 29 min13 min to 1.1 h | Hands-on 100% | Stays with people |
| Weigh, measure, and mix ingredients according to recipes or personal judgment, using various kitchen utensils and equipment.Hands-on preparation.Done hourly or more by most who do it. Robots: in a purpose-built cell, Flexicon Weigh Batching Systems (sold). Anthropic's rating. | 5% | 17 min8 min to 38 min | Hands-on 100% | Stays with people |
| Ensure freshness of food and ingredients by checking for quality, keeping track of old and new items, and rotating stock.Checking and moving ingredients by hand.Done daily by most who do it. Robots: in a purpose-built cell, Swisslog Vectura ASRS cranes with SynQ software (deployed). Anthropic's rating. | 4% | 17 min8 min to 38 min | Hands-on 100% | Stays with people |
| Ensure food is stored and cooked at correct temperature by regulating temperature of ovens, broilers, grills, and roasters.Setting and checking ovens and grills at the line.Done hourly or more by most who do it. Robots: in a purpose-built cell, Marlen industrial spiral oven (deployed). Anthropic's rating. | 4% | 13 min4 min to 25 min | Hands-on 100% | Stays with people |
| Estimate expected food consumption, requisition or purchase supplies, or procure food from storage.Working out what the week needs, placing the order, and fetching from storage.Done daily by most who do it.Robots: in a purpose-built cell, Infinite Kitchen (Sweetgreen / Spyce) (deployed). Anthropic's rating. | 3% | 38 min17 min to 1.3 h | Documents 40%, systems 40%, hands-on 20% | 80%Desk part half by now |
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. Made of: how the task's time splits among five kinds of doing. Only the documents and systems parts can count as within reach, so a task that is 30% documents can be at most 30% 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).
Where the most of these jobs are
The metro areas with the most people in it (BLS, May 2025).
Questions about this job
- How much of the work of Cooks, Restaurant is within reach of AI now?
- An estimated 6% of the working time is within reach of AI models now and 6% by the end of 2028, on METR's long-run pace at four in five. 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 tasks of Cooks, Restaurant come within reach first?
- Weighted by the time each takes, the tasks with the most within reach now (projected from METR's April 2026 measurement and Epoch's November 2026 index) are: Estimate needs and order supplies (80% of the task's time now); Plan menus with supervisors (50% of the task's time now); and Keep records and accounts (100% of the task's time now).
- Which tasks of Cooks, Restaurant stay with people?
- Tasks that are people work or body work are not counted as within reach at any date. The largest: Supervise kitchen staff; Inspect and clean preparation areas; and Season and cook food. Together such tasks are about 92% of the working time, and the people and body parts of the other tasks stay with people too.
- What should Cooks, Restaurant learn as AI takes on more of the work?
- By the job's own task-by-task review, the first things to learn are the hands-on craft; the conversations; and reviewing work you did not do yourself. By the end of 2028 on the long-run pace at four in five, about 94% of the working time stays with people, 5% becomes checking a model's work and 1% could be handed over with lighter checks. It says which parts of the work change, never whether anyone keeps a job.
- Do people already use AI for the work of Cooks, Restaurant?
- In the Claude.ai conversations Anthropic sampled for May 2026, no reportable share went to this job's tasks. Anthropic's labor market measure puts the share of the job's tasks seen in real Claude use at work at 1%. These are measures of use, not of how much of the work AI could finish, and they cover Claude only.
- Can robots do the physical work of Cooks, Restaurant?
- Anthropic's robot exposure rating (September 2026) finds 92% of the working time is physical work, and that a robot has been shown doing most of the task, somewhere, for 89% of the working time. Its index is 0.89 of 3. One example: SCCRUB for "inspect and clean preparation areas". A robot shown somewhere is not one in every workplace; this site's own estimates still count no physical work as within reach.
- How is this estimated?
- From the 20 tasks O*NET lists for the occupation, each with an estimated length checked against GDPval and a share of the working time, reviewed one task at a time on September 30, 2026 for what each is made of (documents, business systems, conversation, in person, hands-on), 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. Data checked November 10, 2026.
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