AI exposure by occupation, O*NET 19-4051.00
Will AI replace Nuclear Technicians?
Nuclear Technicians: AI can already handle 2 of 18 tasks; most of the work is hands-on, and the part AI can address mostly needs a standard-tier model.
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Every task, scored
The 18 tasks O*NET 30.3 lists for Nuclear Technicians, from most to least exposed. 2 reach 60 or more, the level at which AI already handles a task.
| Task | AI exposure | Evidence | Model tier |
|---|---|---|---|
| Calculate equipment operating factors, such as radiation times, dosages, temperatures, gamma intensities, or pressures, using standard formulas and conversion tables. | Estimated | Standard | |
| Determine or recommend radioactive decontamination procedures, according to the size and nature of equipment and the degree of contamination. | Estimated | Frontier | |
| Test plant equipment to ensure it is operating properly. | Estimated | Standard | |
| Monitor nuclear reactor equipment performance to identify operational inefficiencies, hazards, or needs for maintenance or repair. | Estimated | Efficient | |
| Modify, devise, or maintain nuclear equipment used in operations. | Estimated | Efficient | |
| Perform testing, maintenance, repair, or upgrading of accelerator systems. | Estimated | Efficient | |
| Follow nuclear equipment operational policies and procedures that ensure environmental safety. | Estimated | No tier | |
| Conduct surveillance testing to determine safety of nuclear equipment. | Estimated | No tier | |
| Apply safety tags to equipment needing maintenance. | Estimated | No tier | |
| Follow policies and procedures for radiation workers to ensure personnel safety. | Estimated | No tier | |
| Monitor instruments, gauges, or recording devices under direction of nuclear experimenters. | Estimated | No tier | |
| Warn maintenance workers of radiation hazards and direct workers to vacate hazardous areas. | Estimated | No tier | |
| Measure the intensity and identify the types of radiation in work areas, equipment, or materials, using radiation detectors or other instruments. | Estimated | No tier | |
| Identify and implement appropriate decontamination procedures, based on equipment and the size, nature, and type of contamination. | Estimated | No tier | |
| Decontaminate objects by cleaning them using soap or solvents or by abrading using brushes, buffing machines, or sandblasting machines. | Estimated | No tier | |
| Collect air, water, gas or solid samples for testing to determine radioactivity levels or to ensure appropriate radioactive containment. | Estimated | No tier | |
| Set up equipment that automatically detects area radiation deviations and test detection equipment to ensure its accuracy. | Estimated | No tier | |
| Communicate with accelerator maintenance personnel to ensure readiness of support systems, such as vacuum, water cooling, or radio frequency power sources. | 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 standard-tier model or lower covers 30% of the role's importance-weighted task work. 34% of the work is something AI can address at some tier, and 66% 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
- 6,470
- Median annual wage
- $110,240
- Middle half of earners
- $99,110 to $123,990
- Projected change, 2024 to 2034
- -7.7%
Employment and wages: BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, May 2025, national. Projection: BLS Employment Projections 2024 to 2034. BLS publishes these figures by SOC code, so O*NET occupations that share a SOC code show the same figures.
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.
- Nuclear Monitoring Technicians 79% skill overlap, about 8 months to move Exposure54
- Nuclear Power Reactor Operators 78% skill overlap, about 8 months to move Exposure29
- Nuclear Engineers 75% skill overlap, about 9 months to move Exposure52
- Nuclear Medicine Technologists 72% skill overlap, about 10 months to move Exposure56
- Nanotechnology Engineering Technologists and Technicians 70% skill overlap, about 11 months to move Exposure61
Skill overlap and transition time from the JobRoute role adjacency graph on O*NET 30.3 skills.
Questions about Nuclear Technicians and AI
Will AI replace Nuclear Technicians?
AI already handles 2 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 23 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 -7.7% from 2024 to 2034.
What is the AI exposure of Nuclear Technicians?
23 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 Nuclear Technicians tasks can AI already do?
The tasks with the highest exposure are: Calculate equipment operating factors, such as radiation times, dosages, temperatures, gamma intensities, or pressures, using standard formulas and conversion tables; Determine or recommend radioactive decontamination procedures, according to the size and nature of equipment and the degree of contamination. They are the tasks that reach 60 or more.
What AI model tier does this role need?
A standard-tier model or lower covers 30% of the role's importance-weighted task work, and 66% 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 Nuclear Technicians, and what do they earn?
6,470 people in the United States, with a median annual wage of $110,240 (BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, May 2025). BLS Employment Projections expect a change of -7.7% 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: Nuclear Technicians. 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/nuclear-technicians
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