Electronics Engineers, Except Computer
In short: today's best AI models could do about 26% 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 73% by the end of 2028 if progress keeps its long-run pace. The conversations, in-person and hands-on work, about 20% of the time, stays with people.
Research, design, develop, or test electronic components and systems for commercial, industrial, military, or scientific use employing knowledge of electronic theory and materials properties. Design electronic circuits and components for use in fields such as telecommunications, aerospace guidance and propulsion control, acoustics, or instruments and controls.
96,900 people do this job in the US. $130,220 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 work10 h
- Desk work AI can't do yet22 h
- Stays with people8 h
Electronics Engineers, Except Computer, now: of a 40-hour week, AI could take on 0 hours, 10 hours become checking its work, 22 hours are desk work it can't do yet, and 8 hours stay with people.
The largest pieces: Use engineering design software (about 2 h, a person checks); Prepare proprietary documentation (about 1 h, a person checks); Evaluate project work (about 1 h, a person checks).
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.
- 80%
- 0%
- 8%
- 0%
- 12%
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 26% 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, 3%. Today's estimate: 26%.
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, 0.19% went to this job's tasks in May 2026, the 106th largest of the 447 jobs that showed up at all; 5 of its 20 tasks showed up. Within each of Anthropic's methods, never across a change: 0.072% to 0.11% (released February and March 2025); 0.042% to 0.056% (August 2025 to February 2026); 0.21% to 0.19% (April to May 2026).
Each release
| Conversations | Share | Rank | Tasks seen |
|---|---|---|---|
| Released February 2025 | 0.072% | 218 of 708 | 7 of 20 |
| Released March 2025 | 0.11% | 150 of 703 | 8 of 20 |
| The week of Aug 4, 2025 (released September 2025) | 0.042% | 262 of 655 | 5 of 20 |
| The week of Nov 13, 2025 (released January 2026) | 0.057% | 222 of 672 | 7 of 20 |
| The week of Feb 5, 2026 (released March 2026) | 0.056% | 239 of 677 | 7 of 20 |
| April 2026 (released June 2026) | 0.21% | 95 of 434 | 6 of 20 |
| May 2026 (released June 2026) | 0.19% | 106 of 447 | 5 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 10% of this job's working time as physical work. For 10% of the working time, a robot has been shown doing most of the task somewhere: 10% in a purpose-built cell. 0.10 of 3, the 523rd highest of the 923 jobs.
- Not physical 90%
- In a purpose-built cell 10%
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
19% of the working time: the conversation, in-person and hands-on parts of the tasks.
- Direct manufacture and installation, the conversation, 6%
- Develop green electronics technologies, the hands-on work, 3%
- Develop and run test procedures, the hands-on work, 3%
- Design electronic systems, the hands-on work, 2%
- Develop applications of electronic properties, the hands-on work, 2%
- Confer on projects and products, the conversation, 1%
What becomes checking the machine
69% 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 3% is desk work that is small if wrong, which can be handed over with lighter checks.
- Prepare proprietary documentation, costly if wrong, 11%
- Use engineering design software, costly if wrong, 8%
- Design electronic systems, severe if wrong, 6%
- Evaluate project work, costly if wrong, 6%
- Develop applications of electronic properties, costly if wrong, 6%
- Prepare project criteria and plans, costly if wrong, 5%
What to learn
- Briefing a model and checking its drafts. About 80% of the time is documents and data, the part models reach first: writing a clear brief, giving the right material, and checking what comes back.
- 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.
- Judgment where errors are severe. Some tasks are severe if wrong. Knowing when not to trust an output matters more there than speed.
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 | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Prepare documentation containing information such as confidential descriptions or specifications of proprietary hardware or software, product development or introduction schedules, product costs, or information about product performance weaknesses.Specifications and schedules written.Done more than weekly by most who do it. | 11% | 1.7 work days3.3 h to 1 work week | Documents 100% | 28%Half by Apr 2027 |
| Design electronic components, software, products, or systems for commercial, industrial, medical, military, or scientific applications.Design work on paper and screen, with prototypes at the bench.Done daily by most who do it. AI observed on this task. | 11% | 4.2 work days6.7 h to 4.2 work weeks | Documents 80%, hands-on 20% | 4%Desk part half by Jun 2028 |
| Research or develop new green electronics technologies, such as lighting, optical data storage devices, or energy efficient televisions.Research and development, with bench work.Done more than yearly by most who do it. | 11% | 1.7 work weeks1.7 work days to 1.9 work months | Documents 70%, hands-on 30% | 1%Desk part half by Dec 2028 |
| Direct or coordinate activities concerned with manufacture, construction, installation, maintenance, operation, or modification of electronic equipment, products, or systems.Mostly conversation with those doing the work, plus reading and deciding.Done daily by most who do it. | 10% | 6.7 h1.7 h to 4.2 work days | Conversation 60%, documents 40% | 16%Desk part half by Jan 2027 |
| Plan or develop applications or modifications for electronic properties used in components, products, or systems to improve technical performance.Development on paper, with bench work.Done more than yearly by most who do it. | 8% | 2.1 work days3.3 h to 2.1 work weeks | Documents 80%, hands-on 20% | 10%Desk part half by Nov 2027 |
| Develop or perform operational, maintenance, or testing procedures for electronic products, components, equipment, or systems.Procedures written and tests run at the bench.Done more than monthly by most who do it. Robots: in a purpose-built cell, Universal Robots UR10 cobot with Robotiq 2F-85 grippers in KPI Engineering automated avionics test cell (Diehl Aviation / KPI Engineering) (deployed). Anthropic's rating. | 8% | 1.3 work days2.5 h to 4.2 work days | Documents 60%, hands-on 40% | 22%Desk part half by Feb 2027 |
| Operate computer-assisted engineering or design software or equipment to perform electronics engineering tasks.Engineering work in the design tools.Done more than monthly by most who do it. | 8% | 3.3 h50 min to 1.7 work days | Documents 100% | 71%Half by now |
| Evaluate project work to ensure effectiveness, technical adequacy, or compatibility in the resolution of complex electronics engineering problems.Work reviewed for adequacy and compatibility.Done daily by most who do it. | 6% | 6.7 h1.7 h to 3.3 work days | Documents 100% | 46%Half by Dec 2026 |
| Prepare necessary criteria, procedures, reports, or plans for successful conduct of the project with consideration given to site preparation, facility validation, installation, quality assurance, or testing.Criteria, procedures and plans written.Done more than monthly by most who do it. | 6% | 1.7 work days3.3 h to 1 work week | Documents 100% | 28%Half by Apr 2027 |
| Analyze electronics system requirements, capacity, cost, or customer needs to determine project feasibility.Analysis on paper.Done more than monthly by most who do it. AI observed on this task. | 5% | 1.7 work days3.3 h to 1.3 work weeks | Documents 100% | 24%Half by May 2027 |
| Investigate green consumer electronics applications for consumer electronic devices, power saving devices for computers or televisions, or energy efficient power chargers.Research on paper, with bench work.Done yearly or less by most who do it. | 4% | 4.2 work days6.7 h to 3.3 work weeks | Documents 80%, hands-on 20% | 4%Desk part half by Apr 2028 |
| Recommend repair or design modifications of electronics components or systems, based on factors such as environment, service, cost, or system capabilities.Recommendations written.Done more than yearly by most who do it. | 3% | 5 h1.7 h to 2.1 work days | Documents 100% | 73%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.
- Electrical and Electronic Engineering Technologists and Technicians39% now, 48% by 2028
- Electrical and Electronics Repairers, Commercial and Industrial Equipment26% now, 32% by 2028
- Electrical Engineers17% now, 67% by 2028
- Microsystems Engineers10% now, 63% by 2028
- Mechatronics Engineers19% now, 74% by 2028
- Radio Frequency Identification Device Specialists39% now, 76% 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).
Questions about this job
- How much of the work of Electronics Engineers, Except Computer is within reach of AI now?
- An estimated 26% of the working time is within reach of AI models now and 73% by the end of 2028, on METR's long-run pace at four in five (56% to 79% 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 tasks of Electronics Engineers, Except Computer 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: Use engineering design software (71% of the task's time now, 100% by the end of 2028); Prepare proprietary documentation (28% of the task's time now, 99% by the end of 2028); and Evaluate project work (46% of the task's time now, 99% by the end of 2028).
- Which tasks of Electronics Engineers, Except Computer stay with people?
- Tasks that are people work or body work are not counted as within reach at any date. The largest: Represent the employer at meetings. Together such tasks are about 0% of the working time, and the people and body parts of the other tasks stay with people too.
- What should Electronics Engineers, Except Computer learn as AI takes on more of the work?
- By the job's own task-by-task review, the first things to learn are briefing a model and checking its drafts; reviewing work you did not do yourself; and judgment where errors are severe. By the end of 2028 on the long-run pace at four in five, about 19% of the working time stays with people, 69% becomes checking a model's work and 3% 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 Electronics Engineers, Except Computer?
- In the Claude.ai conversations Anthropic sampled for May 2026 and tied to a work task, 0.19% went to this job's tasks, the 106th largest share of the 447 jobs that showed up; 5 of its 20 tasks appeared. Anthropic's labor market measure puts the share of the job's tasks seen in real Claude use at work at 10%. 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 Electronics Engineers, Except Computer?
- Anthropic's robot exposure rating (September 2026) finds 10% of the working time is physical work, and that a robot has been shown doing most of the task, somewhere, for 10% of the working time. Its index is 0.10 of 3. One example: Universal Robots UR10 cobot with Robotiq 2F-85 grippers in KPI Engineering automated avionics test cell for "develop and run test procedures". 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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