AI exposure by occupation, O*NET 51-4071.00

Will AI replace Foundry Mold and Coremakers?

Foundry Mold and Coremakers: AI does not yet handle any of the role's 13 tasks; most of the work is hands-on, and the part AI can address mostly needs an efficient-tier model.

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Every task, scored

The 13 tasks O*NET 30.3 lists for Foundry Mold and Coremakers, from most to least exposed. None reaches 60, the level at which AI already handles a task.

Task AI exposure Evidence Model tier Importance
Clean and smooth molds, cores, and core boxes, and repair surface imperfections. 20 Estimated Efficient 4.7
Position patterns inside mold sections, and clamp sections together. 15 Estimated No tier 4.6
Position cores into lower sections of molds, and reassemble molds for pouring. 15 Estimated No tier 4.6
Sift and pack sand into mold sections, core boxes, and pattern contours, using hand or pneumatic ramming tools. 15 Estimated No tier 4.6
Tend machines that bond cope and drag together to form completed shell molds. 15 Estimated No tier 4.6
Sprinkle or spray parting agents onto patterns and mold sections to facilitate removal of patterns from molds. 15 Estimated No tier 4.5
Form and assemble slab cores around patterns, and position wire in mold sections to reinforce molds, using hand tools and glue. 15 Estimated No tier 4.5
Move and position workpieces, such as mold sections, patterns, and bottom boards, using cranes, or signal others to move workpieces. 15 Estimated No tier 4.4
Rotate sweep boards around spindles to make symmetrical molds for convex impressions. 15 Estimated No tier 4.4
Pour molten metal into molds, manually or with crane ladles. 15 Estimated No tier 4.4
Cut spouts, runner holes, and sprue holes into molds. 15 Estimated No tier 4.3
Operate ovens or furnaces to bake cores or to melt, skim, and flux metal. 12 Estimated No tier 4.3
Lift upper mold sections from lower sections, and remove molded patterns. 8 Estimated No tier 4.3

Observed: scored from AI use recorded in the Anthropic Economic Index (June 2026 release), 0 of 13 tasks. Estimated: scored from the task's O*NET 30.3 work activity, 13 of 13. 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

An efficient-tier model or lower covers 8% of the role's importance-weighted task work. 8% of the work is something AI can address at some tier, and 92% 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
12,790
Median annual wage
$48,110
Middle half of earners
$41,870 to $57,350
Projected change, 2024 to 2034
-25.9%

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 Foundry Mold and Coremakers and AI

Will AI replace Foundry Mold and Coremakers?

Not on current evidence. None of the 13 tasks O*NET lists for this occupation reaches a task exposure of 60, the level at which JobRoute counts a task as handled by AI, and the role's importance-weighted exposure is 15 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.

What is the AI exposure of Foundry Mold and Coremakers?

15 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 13 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 Foundry Mold and Coremakers tasks can AI already do?

None reaches 60 yet. The most exposed task is: Clean and smooth molds, cores, and core boxes, and repair surface imperfections, at 20 out of 100.

What AI model tier does this role need?

An efficient-tier model or lower covers 8% of the role's importance-weighted task work, and 92% 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 Foundry Mold and Coremakers, and what do they earn?

12,790 people in the United States, with a median annual wage of $48,110 (BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, May 2025). BLS Employment Projections expect a change of -25.9% 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: Foundry Mold and Coremakers. 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/foundry-mold-and-coremakers

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