AI exposure by occupation, O*NET 47-5023.00

Will AI replace Earth Drillers, Except Oil and Gas?

Earth Drillers, Except Oil and Gas: AI can already handle 5 of 29 tasks; most of the work is hands-on, and the part AI can address mostly needs a frontier-tier model.

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Every task, scored

The 29 tasks O*NET 30.3 lists for Earth Drillers, Except Oil and Gas, from most to least exposed. 5 reach 60 or more, the level at which AI already handles a task.

Task AI exposure Evidence Model tier Importance
Verify depths and alignments of boring positions. 80 Estimated Standard 4.1
Operate water-well drilling rigs and other equipment to drill, bore, and dig for water wells or for environmental assessment purposes. 65 Estimated Efficient 4.0
Review client requirements and proposed locations for drilling operations to determine feasibility, and to determine cost estimates. 65 Estimated Efficient 3.9
Perform pumping tests to assess well performance. 65 Estimated Standard 3.8
Monitor drilling operations, by checking gauges and listening to equipment to assess drilling conditions and to determine the need to adjust drilling or alter equipment. 65 Estimated Standard 3.0
Create and lay out designs for drill and blast patterns. 50 Estimated Frontier 4.2
Place and install screens, casings, pumps, and other well fixtures to develop wells. 50 Estimated Efficient 4.1
Disinfect, reconstruct, and redevelop contaminated wells and water pumping systems, and clean and disinfect new wells in preparation for use. 50 Estimated Efficient 3.7
Design well pumping systems. 50 Estimated Frontier 3.7
Inspect core samples to determine nature of strata, or take samples to laboratories for analysis. 20 Estimated Efficient 3.4
Fabricate well casings. 15 Estimated No tier 4.4
Operate controls to stabilize machines and to position and align drills. 15 Estimated No tier 4.4
Start, stop, and control drilling speed of machines and insertion of casings into holes. 15 Estimated No tier 4.3
Pour water into wells, or pump water or slush into wells to cool drill bits and to remove drillings. 15 Estimated No tier 4.3
Regulate air pressure, rotary speed, and downward pressure, according to the type of rock or concrete being drilled. 15 Estimated No tier 4.3
Select and attach drill bits and drill rods, adding more rods as hole depths increase, and changing drill bits as needed. 15 Estimated No tier 4.3
Operate machines to flush earth cuttings or to blow dust from holes. 15 Estimated No tier 4.2
Perform routine maintenance and upgrade work on machines and equipment, such as replacing parts, building up drill bits, and lubricating machinery. 15 Estimated No tier 4.1
Select the appropriate drill for the job, using knowledge of rock or soil conditions. 15 Estimated No tier 4.1
Document geological formations encountered during work. 15 Estimated No tier 4.1
Assemble and position machines, augers, casing pipes, and other equipment, using hand and power tools. 15 Estimated No tier 4.0
Record drilling progress and geological data. 15 Estimated No tier 4.0
Retrieve lost equipment from bore holes, using retrieval tools and equipment. 15 Estimated No tier 4.0
Drill or bore holes in rock for blasting, grouting, anchoring, or building foundations. 15 Estimated No tier 3.8
Signal crane operators to move equipment. 15 Estimated No tier 3.5
Withdraw drill rods from holes, and extract core samples. 15 Estimated No tier 3.5
Retract augers to force discharge dirt from holes. 15 Estimated No tier 3.4
Drive or guide truck-mounted equipment into position, level and stabilize rigs, and extend telescoping derricks. 8 Estimated No tier 4.2
Drive trucks, tractors, or truck-mounted drills to and from work sites. 8 Estimated No tier 4.0

Observed: scored from AI use recorded in the Anthropic Economic Index (June 2026 release), 0 of 29 tasks. Estimated: scored from the task's O*NET 30.3 work activity, 29 of 29. 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 33% of the role's importance-weighted task work. 33% of the work is something AI can address at some tier, and 67% is hands-on.

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
19,450
Median annual wage
$60,190
Middle half of earners
$49,900 to $72,450
Projected change, 2024 to 2034
+2.9%

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.

Skill overlap and transition time from the JobRoute role adjacency graph on O*NET 30.3 skills.

Questions about Earth Drillers, Except Oil and Gas and AI

Will AI replace Earth Drillers, Except Oil and Gas?

AI already handles 5 of the 29 tasks O*NET lists for this occupation, at a task exposure of 60 or more, and the role's importance-weighted exposure is 28 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 +2.9% from 2024 to 2034.

What is the AI exposure of Earth Drillers, Except Oil and Gas?

28 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. 0 of the 29 task scores are observed in the Anthropic Economic Index (June 2026 release), and the other 29 are estimated from each task's O*NET work activity.

Which Earth Drillers, Except Oil and Gas tasks can AI already do?

The tasks with the highest exposure are: Verify depths and alignments of boring positions; Operate water-well drilling rigs and other equipment to drill, bore, and dig for water wells or for environmental assessment purposes; Review client requirements and proposed locations for drilling operations to determine feasibility, and to determine cost estimates. They are three of the 5 tasks that reach 60 or more.

What AI model tier does this role need?

A frontier-tier model or lower covers 33% of the role's importance-weighted task work, and 67% is hands-on work that no model tier covers. 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 Earth Drillers, Except Oil and Gas, and what do they earn?

19,450 people in the United States, with a median annual wage of $60,190 (BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, May 2025). BLS Employment Projections expect a change of +2.9% 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: Earth Drillers, Except Oil and Gas. 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/earth-drillers-except-oil-and-gas

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