AI exposure by occupation, O*NET 17-2151.00
Will AI replace Mining and Geological Engineers, Including Mining Safety Engineers?
Mining and Geological Engineers, Including Mining Safety Engineers: AI can already handle 5 of 18 tasks; the work mostly needs a frontier-tier model.
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Every task, scored
The 18 tasks O*NET 30.3 lists for Mining and Geological Engineers, Including Mining Safety Engineers, 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Prepare schedules, reports, and estimates of the costs involved in developing and operating mines. | Estimated | Standard | |
| Monitor mine production rates to assess operational effectiveness. | Estimated | Standard | |
| Supervise, train, and evaluate technicians, technologists, survey personnel, engineers, scientists or other mine personnel. | Estimated | Standard | |
| Evaluate data to develop new mining products, equipment, or processes. | Estimated | Standard | |
| Test air to detect toxic gases and recommend measures to remove them, such as installation of ventilation shafts. | Estimated | Efficient | |
| Select or develop mineral location, extraction, and production methods, based on factors such as safety, cost, and deposit characteristics. | Estimated | Frontier | |
| Select locations and plan underground or surface mining operations, specifying processes, labor usage, and equipment that will result in safe, economical, and environmentally sound extraction of minerals and ores. | Estimated | Frontier | |
| Implement and coordinate mine safety programs, including the design and maintenance of protective and rescue equipment and safety devices. | Estimated | Frontier | |
| Design, develop, and implement computer applications for use in mining operations such as mine design, modeling, or mapping or for monitoring mine conditions. | Estimated | Frontier | |
| Design, implement, and monitor the development of mines, facilities, systems, or equipment. | Estimated | Standard | |
| Design mining and mineral treatment equipment and machinery in collaboration with other engineering specialists. | Estimated | Frontier | |
| Prepare technical reports for use by mining, engineering, and management personnel. | Estimated | Efficient | |
| Devise solutions to problems of land reclamation and water and air pollution, such as methods of storing excavated soil and returning exhausted mine sites to natural states. | Estimated | Frontier | |
| Examine maps, deposits, drilling locations, or mines to determine the location, size, accessibility, contents, value, and potential profitability of mineral, oil, and gas deposits. | Estimated | Efficient | |
| Select or devise materials-handling methods and equipment to transport ore, waste materials, and mineral products efficiently and economically. | Estimated | Frontier | |
| Conduct or direct mining experiments to test or prove research findings. | Estimated | Efficient | |
| Inspect mining areas for unsafe structures, equipment, and working conditions. | Estimated | Efficient | |
| Lay out, direct, and supervise mine construction operations, such as the construction of shafts and tunnels. | Estimated | No tier |
Observed: scored from AI use recorded in the Anthropic Economic Index (June 2026 release), 0 of 18 tasks. Estimated: scored from the task's O*NET 30.3 work activity, 18 of 18. 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 94% of the role's importance-weighted task work. 94% of the work is something AI can address at some tier, and 6% 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
- 6,080
- Median annual wage
- $106,220
- Middle half of earners
- $85,280 to $136,590
- Projected change, 2024 to 2034
- +0.7%
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.
- Geoscientists, Except Hydrologists and Geographers 72% skill overlap, about 10 months to move Exposure63
- Health and Safety Engineers, Except Mining Safety Engineers and Inspectors 69% skill overlap, about 11 months to move Exposure60
- Geological Technicians, Except Hydrologic Technicians 68% skill overlap, about 11 months to move Exposure64
- Petroleum Engineers 67% skill overlap, about 12 months to move Exposure61
- Earth Drillers, Except Oil and Gas 64% skill overlap, about 13 months to move Exposure28
Skill overlap and transition time from the JobRoute role adjacency graph on O*NET 30.3 skills.
Questions about Mining and Geological Engineers, Including Mining Safety Engineers and AI
Will AI replace Mining and Geological Engineers, Including Mining Safety Engineers?
AI already handles 5 of the 18 tasks O*NET lists for this occupation, at a task exposure of 60 or more, and the role's importance-weighted exposure is 49 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 +0.7% from 2024 to 2034.
What is the AI exposure of Mining and Geological Engineers, Including Mining Safety Engineers?
49 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 18 task scores are observed in the Anthropic Economic Index (June 2026 release), and the other 18 are estimated from each task's O*NET work activity.
Which Mining and Geological Engineers, Including Mining Safety Engineers tasks can AI already do?
The tasks with the highest exposure are: Prepare schedules, reports, and estimates of the costs involved in developing and operating mines; Monitor mine production rates to assess operational effectiveness; Supervise, train, and evaluate technicians, technologists, survey personnel, engineers, scientists or other mine personnel. 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 94% 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 Mining and Geological Engineers, Including Mining Safety Engineers, and what do they earn?
6,080 people in the United States, with a median annual wage of $106,220 (BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, May 2025). BLS Employment Projections expect a change of +0.7% 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: Mining and Geological Engineers, Including Mining Safety Engineers. 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/mining-and-geological-engineers-including-mining-safety-engineers
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