← All 785 jobsFile 35-1011
Chefs and Head Cooks
Also filed here: Chef, Head chef, Cook
Mostly untouched
AI barely touches this work so far. The BLS expects 6.6% more of these jobs by 2035, faster than the 3.5% average.
- Rank
- #397 of 785 jobs, by how much of the work AI does
- US jobs, 2025 to 2035
- +6.6% All jobs: +3.5%
- Median US pay
- $62,470 a year, 2025
- People doing it
- 220,300 in the US, with about 25,200 openings a year
The work, 15 activities
The job description, marked up.
Every activity in this job, the biggest first. Tap a line for the evidence.
- deleAI does this
- +AIAI helps
- stetStill yours
Still yours: Direct organizational operations, activities, or procedures19%
Barely appears in AI conversations: fewer than 1 in 2,000.
Still yours: Inspect completed work or finished products12%
Barely appears in AI conversations: fewer than 1 in 2,000.
AI helps with this: Develop recipes or menus9%
People asked AI for help with this in about 1 in 1,712 conversations, and it got them there 88% of the time.
AI does this: Train others on operational or work procedures8%
AI performed this in about 1 in 348 Copilot conversations and completed it 92% of the time.
AI helps with this: Purchase goods or services8%
People asked AI for help with this in about 1 in 214 conversations, and it got them there 91% of the time.
AI helps with this: Monitor individual behavior or performance7%
People asked AI for help with this in about 1 in 1,704 conversations, and it got them there 93% of the time.
AI does this: Determine values or prices of goods or services5%
AI performed this in about 1 in 510 Copilot conversations and completed it 92% of the time.
AI helps with this: Prepare foods or beverages5%
People asked AI for help with this in about 1 in 859 conversations, and it got them there 91% of the time.
Still yours: Perform human resources activities4%
Barely appears in AI conversations: fewer than 1 in 2,000.
Still yours: Inspect facilities or equipment4%
Barely appears in AI conversations: fewer than 1 in 2,000.
AI helps with this: Determine resource needs of projects or operations4%
People asked AI for help with this in about 1 in 1,590 conversations, and it got them there 92% of the time.
Still yours: Schedule operational activities4%
Barely appears in AI conversations: fewer than 1 in 2,000.
Still yours: Maintain operational records4%
Barely appears in AI conversations: fewer than 1 in 2,000.
AI helps with this: Plan events or programs3%
People asked AI for help with this in about 1 in 1,901 conversations, and it got them there 92% of the time.
AI does this: Respond to customer problems or inquiries3%
AI performed this in about 1 in 6 Copilot conversations and completed it 84% of the time.
2025 to 2035
Ten years from now.
For every 100 of these jobs in 2025, the BLS projects 107 in 2035. Across all US jobs, about 104.
About 25,200 openings a year, from growth and from people who retire or move on.
Nearby
Where your skills travel.
Jobs that share the most work with this one, where AI does less of it.
- Shares 32% of the workAircraft Cargo Handling Supervisors0% AI does, against 17% here+9.2% by 2035 · $58,170 · High school diploma
- Shares 28% of the workFood Service Managers9% AI does, against 17% here+5.8% by 2035 · $69,390 · High school diploma
- Shares 27% of the workMorticians, Undertakers, and Funeral Arrangers10% AI does, against 17% here+3% by 2035 · $55,010 · Associate’s degree
The wire
On the wire.
Nothing filed about this job yet. The latest from the Work front:
How to read this file.
deleAI does this. In US Bing Copilot conversations from January to September 2024, AI itself performed the activity, completed it and made a real difference often enough to count.
+AIAI helps. People brought the activity to AI as their own goal, and it usually got them there.
stetStill yours. It barely shows up in AI use, AI rarely finishes it, or in this job it needs hands.
Shares are weighted by how much each activity matters in the job, using O*NET. Microsoft’s own AI applicability score for this job is 0.15, higher than 53% of jobs.
Doing an activity is not doing a job. The researchers behind this data warn against reading it as job loss, and so do we. It is US data; the shape of the work travels.
Sources: Microsoft Research, Working with AI (2025) · O*NET OnLine, 35-1011 · BLS Employment Projections 2025 to 2035
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