AI exposure by occupation, O*NET 51-9195.05
Will AI replace Potters, Manufacturing?
Potters, Manufacturing: AI can already handle 2 of 23 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 23 tasks O*NET 30.3 lists for Potters, Manufacturing, 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 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Start machine units and conveyors and observe lights and gauges on panel board to verify operational efficiency. | Estimated | Standard | |
| Verify accuracy of shapes and sizes of objects, using calipers and templates. | Estimated | Standard | |
| Design spaces to display pottery for sale. | Estimated | Frontier | |
| Design clay forms and molds, and decorations for forms. | Estimated | Frontier | |
| Teach pottery classes. | Estimated | Efficient | |
| Prepare work for sale or exhibition, and maintain relationships with retail, pottery, art, and resource networks that can facilitate sale or exhibition of work. | Estimated | Efficient | |
| Maintain supplies of tools, equipment, and materials, and order additional supplies as needed. | Estimated | Standard | |
| Operate gas or electric kilns to fire pottery pieces. | Estimated | No tier | |
| Raise and shape clay into wares, such as vases and pitchers, on revolving wheels, using hands, fingers, and thumbs. | Estimated | No tier | |
| Mix and apply glazes to pottery pieces, using tools, such as spray guns. | Estimated | No tier | |
| Adjust wheel speeds according to the feel of the clay as pieces enlarge and walls become thinner. | Estimated | No tier | |
| Position balls of clay in centers of potters' wheels, and start motors or pump treadles with feet to revolve wheels. | Estimated | No tier | |
| Move pieces from wheels so that they can dry. | Estimated | No tier | |
| Attach handles to pottery pieces. | Estimated | No tier | |
| Press thumbs into centers of revolving clay to form hollows, and press on the inside and outside of emerging clay cylinders with hands and fingers, gradually raising and shaping clay to desired forms and sizes. | Estimated | No tier | |
| Pack and ship pottery to stores or galleries for retail sale. | Estimated | No tier | |
| Smooth surfaces of finished pieces, using rubber scrapers and wet sponges. | Estimated | No tier | |
| Pull wires through bases of articles and wheels to separate finished pieces. | Estimated | No tier | |
| Examine finished ware for defects and measure dimensions, using rule and thickness gauge. | Estimated | No tier | |
| Operate pug mills to blend and extrude clay. | Estimated | No tier | |
| Operate drying chambers to dry or finish molded ceramic ware. | Estimated | No tier | |
| Perform test-fires of pottery to determine how to achieve specific colors and textures. | Estimated | No tier | |
| Adjust pressures, temperatures, and trimming tool settings as required. | Estimated | No tier |
Observed: scored from AI use recorded in the Anthropic Economic Index (June 2026 release), 0 of 23 tasks. Estimated: scored from the task's O*NET 30.3 work activity, 23 of 23. 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 28% of the role's importance-weighted task work. 28% of the work is something AI can address at some tier, and 72% 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
- 33,190
- Median annual wage
- $46,170
- Middle half of earners
- $39,280 to $53,000
- Projected change, 2024 to 2034
- +6.2%
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.
- Molders, Shapers, and Casters, Except Metal and Plastic 64% skill overlap, about 13 months to move Exposure18
- Furnace, Kiln, Oven, Drier, and Kettle Operators and Tenders 62% skill overlap, about 14 months to move Exposure22
- Extruding, Forming, Pressing, and Compacting Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders 61% skill overlap, about 14 months to move Exposure23
- Molding, Coremaking, and Casting Machine Setters, Operators, and Tenders, Metal and Plastic 60% skill overlap, about 15 months to move Exposure20
- Pourers and Casters, Metal 59% skill overlap, about 15 months to move Exposure16
Skill overlap and transition time from the JobRoute role adjacency graph on O*NET 30.3 skills.
Questions about Potters, Manufacturing and AI
Will AI replace Potters, Manufacturing?
AI already handles 2 of the 23 tasks O*NET lists for this occupation, at a task exposure of 60 or more, and the role's importance-weighted exposure is 25 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 +6.2% from 2024 to 2034.
What is the AI exposure of Potters, Manufacturing?
25 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 23 task scores are observed in the Anthropic Economic Index (June 2026 release), and the other 23 are estimated from each task's O*NET work activity.
Which Potters, Manufacturing tasks can AI already do?
The tasks with the highest exposure are: Start machine units and conveyors and observe lights and gauges on panel board to verify operational efficiency; Verify accuracy of shapes and sizes of objects, using calipers and templates. They are the tasks that reach 60 or more.
What AI model tier does this role need?
A frontier-tier model or lower covers 28% of the role's importance-weighted task work, and 72% 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 Potters, Manufacturing, and what do they earn?
33,190 people in the United States, with a median annual wage of $46,170 (BLS Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, May 2025). BLS Employment Projections expect a change of +6.2% 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: Potters, Manufacturing. 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/potters-manufacturing
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