← All 785 jobsFile 51-9194
Etchers and Engravers
Mostly untouched
AI barely touches this work so far. The BLS expects 0.7% fewer of these jobs by 2035.
- Rank
- #572 of 785 jobs, by how much of the work AI does
- US jobs, 2025 to 2035
- -0.7% All jobs: +3.5%
- Median US pay
- $43,310 a year, 2025
- People doing it
- 8,900 in the US, with about 800 openings a year
The work, 19 activities
The job description, marked up.
Every activity in this job, the biggest first. Tap a line for the evidence.
- deleAI does this
- +AIAI helps
- stetStill yours
Still yours: Inspect completed work or finished products16%
Barely appears in AI conversations: fewer than 1 in 2,000.
Still yours: Apply protective solutions or coatings9%
Barely appears in AI conversations: fewer than 1 in 2,000.
Still yours: Smooth surfaces of objects or equipment8%
Barely appears in AI conversations: fewer than 1 in 2,000.
Still yours: Position workpieces or materials on equipment8%
Barely appears in AI conversations: fewer than 1 in 2,000.
Still yours: Engrave objects8%
Barely appears in AI conversations: fewer than 1 in 2,000.
AI does this: Read documents or materials to inform work processes7%
AI performed this in about 1 in 214 Copilot conversations and completed it 87% of the time.
Still yours: Clean workpieces, finished products, or other objects6%
Barely appears in AI conversations: fewer than 1 in 2,000.
Still yours: Cut materials6%
Barely appears in AI conversations: fewer than 1 in 2,000.
AI helps with this: Measure physical characteristics of materials, products, or equipment5%
People asked AI for help with this in about 1 in 1,656 conversations, and it got them there 84% of the time.
AI helps with this: Adjust equipment to ensure adequate performance4%
People asked AI for help with this in about 1 in 510 conversations, and it got them there 94% of the time.
AI helps with this: Design materials or devices4%
People asked AI for help with this in about 1 in 820 conversations, and it got them there 57% of the time.
Still yours: Remove workpieces from production equipment4%
Barely appears in AI conversations: fewer than 1 in 2,000.
AI helps with this: Determine operational methods or procedures3%
People asked AI for help with this in about 1 in 221 conversations, and it got them there 93% of the time. In this job the work is hands-on, so AI can only assist.
Still yours: Operate cutting or grinding equipment3%
Barely appears in AI conversations: fewer than 1 in 2,000.
Still yours: Operate industrial processing or production equipment3%
Barely appears in AI conversations: fewer than 1 in 2,000.
AI helps with this: Prepare mixtures or solutions3%
People asked AI for help with this in about 1 in 714 conversations, and it got them there 93% of the time.
Still yours: Position materials or components for assembly2%
Barely appears in AI conversations: fewer than 1 in 2,000.
Still yours: Prepare industrial materials for processing or use2%
Barely appears in AI conversations: fewer than 1 in 2,000.
Still yours: Apply materials to fill gaps or imperfections1%
Barely appears in AI conversations: fewer than 1 in 2,000.
2025 to 2035
Ten years from now.
For every 100 of these jobs in 2025, the BLS projects 99 in 2035. Across all US jobs, about 104.
Even shrinking, it should still see about 800 openings a year as people retire or move on.
Nearby
Where your skills travel.
Jobs that share the most work with this one, where AI does less of it.
- Shares 50% of the workOphthalmic Laboratory Technicians0% AI does, against 7% here+2.2% by 2035 · $39,460 · High school diploma
- Shares 46% of the workTire Builders0% AI does, against 7% here+0.8% by 2035 · $57,390 · High school diploma
- Shares 35% of the workCoating, Painting, and Spraying Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders0% AI does, against 7% here+2.5% by 2035 · $48,250 · High school diploma
The wire
On the wire.
Nothing filed about this job yet. The latest from the Work front:
How to read this file.
deleAI does this. In US Bing Copilot conversations from January to September 2024, AI itself performed the activity, completed it and made a real difference often enough to count.
+AIAI helps. People brought the activity to AI as their own goal, and it usually got them there.
stetStill yours. It barely shows up in AI use, AI rarely finishes it, or in this job it needs hands.
Shares are weighted by how much each activity matters in the job, using O*NET. Microsoft’s own AI applicability score for this job is 0.08, higher than 26% of jobs.
Doing an activity is not doing a job. The researchers behind this data warn against reading it as job loss, and so do we. It is US data; the shape of the work travels.
Sources: Microsoft Research, Working with AI (2025) · O*NET OnLine, 51-9194 · BLS Employment Projections 2025 to 2035
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