← All 785 jobsFile 51-7032
Patternmakers, Wood
Mostly untouched
AI barely touches this work so far. The BLS expects 2% fewer of these jobs by 2035.
- Rank
- #499 of 785 jobs, by how much of the work AI does
- US jobs, 2025 to 2035
- -2% All jobs: +3.5%
- Median US pay
- $49,630 a year, 2025
- People doing it
- 600 in the US, with about 100 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: Assemble products or work aids15%
Barely appears in AI conversations: fewer than 1 in 2,000.
AI helps with this: Measure physical characteristics of materials, products, or equipment9%
People asked AI for help with this in about 1 in 1,656 conversations, and it got them there 84% of the time.
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: Position materials or components for assembly6%
Barely appears in AI conversations: fewer than 1 in 2,000.
Still yours: Shape materials to create products6%
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: Adjust equipment to ensure adequate performance5%
People asked AI for help with this in about 1 in 510 conversations, and it got them there 94% of the time.
Still yours: Operate cutting or grinding equipment5%
Barely appears in AI conversations: fewer than 1 in 2,000.
AI helps with this: Design materials or devices5%
People asked AI for help with this in about 1 in 820 conversations, and it got them there 57% of the time.
AI helps with this: Plan work activities5%
People asked AI for help with this in about 1 in 482 conversations, and it got them there 94% of the time. In this job the work is hands-on, so AI can only assist.
Still yours: Apply protective solutions or coatings5%
Barely appears in AI conversations: fewer than 1 in 2,000.
Still yours: Repair workpieces or products4%
Barely appears in AI conversations: fewer than 1 in 2,000.
Still yours: Replenish inventories of materials, equipment, or products4%
Barely appears in AI conversations: fewer than 1 in 2,000.
Still yours: Mark materials or objects for identification4%
Barely appears in AI conversations: fewer than 1 in 2,000.
AI helps with this: Select materials or equipment for operations or projects4%
People asked AI for help with this in about 1 in 222 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: Maintain operational records4%
Barely appears in AI conversations: fewer than 1 in 2,000.
AI does this: Determine values or prices of goods or services3%
AI performed this in about 1 in 510 Copilot conversations and completed it 92% of the time.
AI helps with this: Purchase goods or services2%
People asked AI for help with this in about 1 in 214 conversations, and it got them there 91% of the time.
Still yours: Distribute materials, supplies, or resources2%
AI does this in desk jobs, but in this one it is mostly hands-on.
2025 to 2035
Ten years from now.
For every 100 of these jobs in 2025, the BLS projects 98 in 2035. Across all US jobs, about 104.
Even shrinking, it should still see about 100 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 37% of the workTire Builders0% AI does, against 10% here+0.8% by 2035 · $57,390 · High school diploma
- Shares 28% of the workExtruding, Forming, Pressing, and Compacting Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders4% AI does, against 10% here+1.5% by 2035 · $45,760 · High school diploma
- Shares 37% of the workOphthalmic Laboratory Technicians0% AI does, against 10% here+2.2% by 2035 · $39,460 · 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 0.12, higher than 42% 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, 51-7032 · BLS Employment Projections 2025 to 2035
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