Non-Destructive Testing Specialists
In short: today's best AI models could do about 21% 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 people and hands-on work, about 79% of the time, stays with people.
Test the safety of structures, vehicles, or vessels using x-ray, ultrasound, fiber optic or related equipment.
$78,350 a year (for the broader BLS group this job sits in).
A typical 40-hour week
Not yet reviewed task by task- AI could take on8 h
- A person checks AI's work0 h
- Desk work AI can't do yet0 h
- Stays with people32 h
Non-Destructive Testing Specialists, now: of a 40-hour week, AI could take on 8 hours, 0 hours become checking its work, 0 hours are desk work it can't do yet, and 32 hours stay with people.
The largest pieces: Interpret or evaluate test results in accordance with applicable codes, standards, specifications, or procedures (about 2 h); Interpret the results of all methods of non-destructive testing (NDT), such as acoustic emission, electromagnetic, leak, liquid penetrant, magnetic particle, neutron radiographic, radiographic, thermal or infrared, ultrasonic, vibration analysis, and visual testing (about 2 h); Document non-destructive testing methods, processes, or results (about 2 h).
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.
- 21%
- 7%
- 71%
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.
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, 15%. Today's estimate: 21%.
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 16 tasks showed up. Within each of Anthropic's methods, never across a change: 0.069% to 0.13% (released February and March 2025); 0.02% to 0.01% (August 2025 to February 2026).
Each release
| Conversations | Share | Rank | Tasks seen |
|---|---|---|---|
| Released February 2025 | 0.069% | 228 of 708 | 7 of 16 |
| Released March 2025 | 0.13% | 126 of 703 | 6 of 16 |
| The week of Aug 4, 2025 (released September 2025) | 0.02% | 369 of 655 | 5 of 16 |
| The week of Nov 13, 2025 (released January 2026) | 0.011% | 458 of 672 | 3 of 16 |
| The week of Feb 5, 2026 (released March 2026) | 0.01% | 490 of 677 | 4 of 16 |
| April 2026 (released June 2026) | none | n/a | 0 of 16 |
| May 2026 (released June 2026) | none | n/a | 0 of 16 |
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 64% of this job's working time as physical work. For 64% of the working time, a robot has been shown doing most of the task somewhere: 55% in a purpose-built cell, 9% in a structured facility. 0.73 of 3, the 248th highest of the 923 jobs.
- Not physical 36%
- In a purpose-built cell 55%
- In a structured facility 9%
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.
The tasks
Sorted by . 16 tasks from .
| Task | Kind | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Examine structures or vehicles such as aircraft, trains, nuclear reactors, bridges, dams, and pipelines, using non-destructive testing techniques.Done several times a day by most who do it. Robots: in a structured facility, Square Robot SR-3 (sold). Anthropic's rating. | 11% | 6.7 h1.7 h to 3.3 work days | Stays with people | |
| Develop or use new non-destructive testing methods, such as acoustic emission testing, leak testing, and thermal or infrared testing.Done more than weekly by most who do it. Robots: in a purpose-built cell, Spot with Spot CAM+IR / Spot Cam 2 and Orbit software (Boston Dynamics) (sold). Anthropic's rating. | 11% | 4.2 work days6.7 h to 3.3 work weeks | Stays with people | |
| Make radiographic images to detect flaws in objects while leaving objects intact.Done hourly or more by most who do it. Robots: in a purpose-built cell, PRD real-time X-ray inspection systems for SAW pipe (sold). Anthropic's rating. | 8% | 1.7 h50 min to 5 h | Stays with people | |
| Visually examine materials, structures, or components for signs of corrosion, metal fatigue, cracks, or other flaws, using tools and equipment such as endoscopes, closed-circuit television systems, and fiber optics.Done several times a day by most who do it. Robots: in a purpose-built cell, Keyence VS Series machine vision system (weld inspection application) (sold). Anthropic's rating. | 8% | 1.7 h25 min to 3.3 h | Stays with people | |
| Supervise or direct the work of non-destructive testing trainees or staff.Done daily by most who do it. | 7% | 1.7 h38 min to 5 h | Stays with people | |
| Identify defects in solid materials, using ultrasonic testing techniques.Done hourly or more by most who do it. Robots: in a purpose-built cell, Evident automated inspection systems (gantry, pass-through, immersion tank and robotic platforms) (sold). Anthropic's rating. | 7% | 1.3 h38 min to 4.2 h | Stays with people | |
| Interpret or evaluate test results in accordance with applicable codes, standards, specifications, or procedures.Done hourly or more by most who do it. | 6% | 50 min17 min to 3.3 h | 99%Half by now | |
| Produce images of objects on film, using radiographic techniques.Done hourly or more by most who do it. Robots: in a purpose-built cell, Dual-robot collaborative digital radiographic inspection system for rocket tank welds (Chinese aerospace manufacturing group / academic authors (Li, Shao, Wang, Lu et al.), published in Applied System Innovation) (demonstrated). Anthropic's rating. | 6% | 1.3 h25 min to 3.3 h | Stays with people | |
| Interpret the results of all methods of non-destructive testing (NDT), such as acoustic emission, electromagnetic, leak, liquid penetrant, magnetic particle, neutron radiographic, radiographic, thermal or infrared, ultrasonic, vibration analysis, and visual testing.Done hourly or more by most who do it. | 6% | 50 min25 min to 2.5 h | 100%Half by now | |
| Document non-destructive testing methods, processes, or results.Done several times a day by most who do it. | 5% | 1.3 h25 min to 5 h | 97%Half by now | |
| Conduct liquid penetrant tests to locate surface cracks by coating objects with fluorescent dyes, cleaning excess penetrant, and applying developer.Done hourly or more by most who do it. Robots: in a purpose-built cell, REL automated FPI processing lines (REL, Inc.) (sold). Anthropic's rating. | 5% | 1.3 h38 min to 2.5 h | Stays with people | |
| Map the presence of imperfections within objects, using sonic measurements.Done more than weekly by most who do it. Robots: in a purpose-built cell, Krautkramer SNUP / ROWA-WT automated UT machines (Waygate Technologies) (sold). Anthropic's rating. | 5% | 1.7 h38 min to 5 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.
- Aerospace Engineering and Operations Technologists and Technicians10% now, 21% by 2028
- Calibration Technologists and Technicians37% now, 55% by 2028
- Mechanical Engineering Technologists and Technicians35% now, 53% by 2028
- Automotive Engineering Technicians19% now, 19% by 2028
- Electrical and Electronic Engineering Technologists and Technicians39% now, 48% by 2028
- Inspectors, Testers, Sorters, Samplers, and Weighers27% now, 27% by 2028
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.
Questions about this job
- How much of the work of Non-Destructive Testing Specialists is within reach of AI now?
- An estimated 21% of the working time is within reach of AI models now and 21% 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 Non-Destructive Testing Specialists 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: Interpret or evaluate test results in accordance with applicable codes, standards, specifications, or procedures (99% of the task's time now); Interpret the results of all methods of non-destructive testing (NDT), such as acoustic emission, electromagnetic, leak, liquid penetrant, magnetic particle, neutron radiographic, radiographic, thermal or infrared, ultrasonic, vibration analysis, and visual testing (100% of the task's time now); and Document non-destructive testing methods, processes, or results (97% of the task's time now).
- Which tasks of Non-Destructive Testing Specialists stay with people?
- Tasks that are people work or body work are not counted as within reach at any date. The largest: Examine structures or vehicles such as aircraft, trains, nuclear reactors, bridges, dams, and pipelines, using non-destructive testing techniques; Develop or use new non-destructive testing methods, such as acoustic emission testing, leak testing, and thermal or infrared testing; and Make radiographic images to detect flaws in objects while leaving objects intact. Together such tasks are about 79% of the working time.
- Do people already use AI for the work of Non-Destructive Testing Specialists?
- 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 0%. 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 Non-Destructive Testing Specialists?
- Anthropic's robot exposure rating (September 2026) finds 64% of the working time is physical work, and that a robot has been shown doing most of the task, somewhere, for 64% of the working time, 9% in a structured facility. Its index is 0.73 of 3. One example: Square Robot SR-3 for "examine structures or vehicles such as aircraft, trains, nuclear reactors, bridges, dams, and pipelines, using non-destructive testing techniques". 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 16 tasks O*NET lists for the occupation, each with an estimated length checked against GDPval and a share of the working time, each classed as desk, people or body work, 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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