AI exposure by occupation, O*NET 27-1021.00
Will AI replace Commercial and Industrial Designers?
Commercial and Industrial Designers: AI can already handle 6 of 17 tasks; the work mostly needs a frontier-tier model.
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Every task, scored
The 17 tasks O*NET 30.3 lists for Commercial and Industrial Designers, from most to least exposed. 6 reach 60 or more, the level at which AI already handles a task.
| Task | AI exposure | Evidence | Model tier |
|---|---|---|---|
| Modify and refine designs, using working models, to conform with customer specifications, production limitations, or changes in design trends. | Observed | Standard | |
| Prepare sketches of ideas, detailed drawings, illustrations, artwork, or blueprints, using drafting instruments, paints and brushes, or computer-aided design equipment. | Estimated | Frontier | |
| Direct and coordinate the fabrication of models or samples and the drafting of working drawings and specification sheets from sketches. | Estimated | Frontier | |
| Evaluate feasibility of design ideas, based on factors such as appearance, safety, function, serviceability, budget, production costs/methods, and market characteristics. | Observed | Standard | |
| Confer with engineering, marketing, production, or sales departments, or with customers, to establish and evaluate design concepts for manufactured products. | Estimated | Standard | |
| Research production specifications, costs, production materials, and manufacturing methods and provide cost estimates and itemized production requirements. | Observed | Standard | |
| Present designs and reports to customers or design committees for approval and discuss need for modification. | Estimated | Standard | |
| Develop industrial standards and regulatory guidelines. | Estimated | Frontier | |
| Coordinate the look and function of product lines. | Estimated | Standard | |
| Develop manufacturing procedures and monitor the manufacture of their designs in a factory to improve operations and product quality. | Estimated | Standard | |
| Participate in new product planning or market research, including studying the potential need for new products. | Estimated | Efficient | |
| Supervise assistants' work throughout the design process. | Estimated | Frontier | |
| Design graphic material for use as ornamentation, illustration, or advertising on manufactured materials and packaging or containers. | Estimated | Frontier | |
| Read publications, attend showings, and study competing products and design styles and motifs to obtain perspective and generate design concepts. | Estimated | Standard | |
| Advise corporations on issues involving corporate image projects or problems. | Observed | Efficient | |
| Fabricate models or samples in paper, wood, glass, fabric, plastic, metal, or other materials, using hand or power tools. | Estimated | Efficient | |
| Investigate product characteristics such as the product's safety and handling qualities, its market appeal, how efficiently it can be produced, and ways of distributing, using, and maintaining it. | Estimated | Efficient |
Observed: scored from AI use recorded in the Anthropic Economic Index (June 2026 release), 4 of 17 tasks. Estimated: scored from the task's O*NET 30.3 work activity, 13 of 17. Importance is O*NET's 1 to 5 rating of how central the task is. Model tier is the lowest tier that can do the task under the published rubric; "No tier" marks hands-on work.
The model tier this role needs
A frontier-tier model or lower covers 100% of the role's importance-weighted task work. 100% of the work is something AI can address at some tier.
Efficient, standard and frontier tiers come from the JobRoute model tier reference. The recommended tier is the lowest one that covers 80% of the work AI can address. How the method works.
Wages, employment and outlook
- US employment
- 33,490
- Median annual wage
- $83,910
- Middle half of earners
- $66,450 to $109,050
- Projected change, 2024 to 2034
- +3.2%
Employment and wages: BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, May 2025, national. Projection: BLS Employment Projections 2024 to 2034.
Adjacent roles
The occupations that reuse the most of this role's skills, with the usual time to move. These are the first places to look when you plan to redeploy or retrain people in this role.
- Interior Designers 73% skill overlap, about 10 months to move Exposure53
- Graphic Designers 72% skill overlap, about 10 months to move Exposure42
- Fashion Designers 68% skill overlap, about 11 months to move Exposure45
- Video Game Designers 64% skill overlap, about 13 months to move Exposure58
- Web and Digital Interface Designers 63% skill overlap, about 13 months to move Exposure58
Skill overlap and transition time from the JobRoute role adjacency graph on O*NET 30.3 skills.
Questions about Commercial and Industrial Designers and AI
Will AI replace Commercial and Industrial Designers?
AI already handles 6 of the 17 tasks O*NET lists for this occupation, at a task exposure of 60 or more, and the role's importance-weighted exposure is 58 out of 100. JobRoute scores tasks, not whole jobs, so the score shows how much of the work changes rather than whether the job disappears. BLS projects employment to change by +3.2% from 2024 to 2034.
What is the AI exposure of Commercial and Industrial Designers?
58 out of 100 on JobRoute's task exposure measure, the importance-weighted average of the role's O*NET task scores. Higher means more of the work is AI-doable today. 4 of the 17 task scores are observed in the Anthropic Economic Index (June 2026 release), and the other 13 are estimated from each task's O*NET work activity.
Which Commercial and Industrial Designers tasks can AI already do?
The tasks with the highest exposure are: Modify and refine designs, using working models, to conform with customer specifications, production limitations, or changes in design trends; Prepare sketches of ideas, detailed drawings, illustrations, artwork, or blueprints, using drafting instruments, paints and brushes, or computer-aided design equipment; Direct and coordinate the fabrication of models or samples and the drafting of working drawings and specification sheets from sketches. They are three of the 6 tasks that reach 60 or more.
What AI model tier does this role need?
A frontier-tier model or lower covers 100% of the role's importance-weighted task work. JobRoute assigns each task the lowest tier that can do it under a published rubric and recommends the lowest tier that covers 80% of the work AI can address.
How many people work as Commercial and Industrial Designers, and what do they earn?
33,490 people in the United States, with a median annual wage of $83,910 (BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, May 2025). BLS Employment Projections expect a change of +3.2% from 2024 to 2034.
How to cite
Data version 2026-11-02, JobRoute method v1.0.0. Download all occupations or this occupation as JSON. Methodology.
JobRoute (2026). AI exposure: Commercial and Industrial Designers. Data version 2026-11-02, method v1.0.0. Built on O*NET 30.3, BLS OEWS May 2025 and the Anthropic Economic Index (June 2026). CC BY 4.0. https://www.jobroute.ai/jobs/commercial-and-industrial-designers
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