← All 785 jobsFile 51-4121
Welders, Cutters, Solderers, and Brazers
Also filed here: Welder, Fabricator
Mostly untouched
AI barely touches this work so far. The BLS expects 2.4% more of these jobs by 2035, slower than the 3.5% average.
- Rank
- #536 of 785 jobs, by how much of the work AI does
- US jobs, 2025 to 2035
- +2.4% All jobs: +3.5%
- Median US pay
- $53,750 a year, 2025
- People doing it
- 437,700 in the US, with about 40,300 openings a year
The work, 23 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: Join parts using soldering, welding, or brazing techniques20%
Barely appears in AI conversations: fewer than 1 in 2,000.
Still yours: Prepare industrial materials for processing or use8%
Barely appears in AI conversations: fewer than 1 in 2,000.
Still yours: Operate cutting or grinding equipment7%
Barely appears in AI conversations: fewer than 1 in 2,000.
Still yours: Monitor equipment operation6%
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.
AI helps with this: Measure physical characteristics of materials, products, or equipment6%
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: Select materials or equipment for operations or projects5%
AI performed this in about 1 in 529 Copilot conversations and completed it 94% of the time.
AI helps with this: Maintain safety or security5%
People asked AI for help with this in about 1 in 1,066 conversations, and it got them there 93% of the time.
Still yours: Cut materials5%
Barely appears in AI conversations: fewer than 1 in 2,000.
Still yours: Notify others of emergencies or problems3%
Barely appears in AI conversations: fewer than 1 in 2,000.
Still yours: Mark materials or objects for identification3%
Barely appears in AI conversations: fewer than 1 in 2,000.
Still yours: Clean workpieces, finished products, or other objects3%
Barely appears in AI conversations: fewer than 1 in 2,000.
Still yours: Position workpieces or materials on equipment3%
Barely appears in AI conversations: fewer than 1 in 2,000.
AI does this: Determine operational methods or procedures3%
AI performed this in about 1 in 461 Copilot conversations and completed it 93% of the time.
Still yours: Position materials or components for assembly3%
Barely appears in AI conversations: fewer than 1 in 2,000.
AI helps with this: Adjust equipment to ensure adequate performance3%
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 devices2%
People asked AI for help with this in about 1 in 820 conversations, and it got them there 57% of the time.
Still yours: Clean tools, equipment, facilities, or work areas2%
Barely appears in AI conversations: fewer than 1 in 2,000.
Still yours: Disassemble equipment2%
Barely appears in AI conversations: fewer than 1 in 2,000.
Still yours: Repair workpieces or products2%
Barely appears in AI conversations: fewer than 1 in 2,000.
Still yours: Protect people or property from threats such as fires or flooding1%
Barely appears in AI conversations: fewer than 1 in 2,000.
Still yours: Build structures1%
Barely appears in AI conversations: fewer than 1 in 2,000.
Still yours: Operate industrial processing or production equipment1%
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 102 in 2035. Across all US jobs, about 104.
About 40,300 openings a year, from growth and from people who retire or move on.
BLS on AIAutomation in manufacturing may limit overall demand. Source ↗
Nearby
Where your skills travel.
Jobs that share the most work with this one, where AI does less of it.
- Shares 30% of the workPackaging and Filling Machine Operators and Tenders0% AI does, against 8% here+4.1% by 2035 · $43,220 · High school diploma
- Shares 39% of the workOphthalmic Laboratory Technicians0% AI does, against 8% here+2.2% by 2035 · $39,460 · High school diploma
- Shares 29% of the workSewing Machine Operators0% AI does, against 8% here-15.1% by 2035 · $36,670 · No formal credential
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 0.07, higher than 22% 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, 51-4121 · BLS Employment Projections 2025 to 2035
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