← All 785 jobsFile 19-2099
Physical Scientists
Lightly edited
AI performs some of this work. Most of it still needs a person. The BLS expects 2.1% more of these jobs by 2035, slower than the 3.5% average.
- Rank
- #255 of 785 jobs, by how much of the work AI does
- US jobs, 2025 to 2035
- +2.1% All jobs: +3.5%
- Median US pay
- $122,570 a year, 2025
- People doing it
- 26,600 in the US, with about 1,400 openings a year
The work, 16 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: Analyze environmental or geospatial data23%
Barely appears in AI conversations: fewer than 1 in 2,000.
Still yours: Maintain operational records7%
Barely appears in AI conversations: fewer than 1 in 2,000.
AI helps with this: Create visual designs or displays7%
People asked AI for help with this in about 1 in 78 conversations, and it got them there 40% of the time.
Still yours: Direct scientific or technical activities7%
Barely appears in AI conversations: fewer than 1 in 2,000.
Still yours: Develop systems or practices to mitigate or resolve environmental problems6%
Barely appears in AI conversations: fewer than 1 in 2,000.
AI does this: Present research or technical information6%
AI performed this in about 1 in 30 Copilot conversations and completed it 90% of the time.
AI does this: Compile records, documentation, or other data5%
AI performed this in about 1 in 301 Copilot conversations and completed it 90% of the time.
Still yours: Design databases5%
Barely appears in AI conversations: fewer than 1 in 2,000.
Still yours: Develop research plans or methodologies5%
Barely appears in AI conversations: fewer than 1 in 2,000.
Still yours: Collect environmental or biological samples5%
Barely appears in AI conversations: fewer than 1 in 2,000.
AI does this: Train others on operational or work procedures4%
AI performed this in about 1 in 348 Copilot conversations and completed it 92% of the time.
AI does this: Maintain current knowledge in area of expertise4%
AI performed this in about 1 in 40 Copilot conversations and completed it 91% of the time.
AI does this: Evaluate the characteristics, usefulness, or performance of products or technologies4%
AI performed this in about 1 in 237 Copilot conversations and completed it 93% of the time.
AI helps with this: Set up equipment4%
People asked AI for help with this in about 1 in 511 conversations, and it got them there 95% of the time.
AI does this: Advise others on the design or use of technologies4%
AI performed this in about 1 in 97 Copilot conversations and completed it 91% of the time.
AI helps with this: Design computer or information systems or applications3%
People asked AI for help with this in about 1 in 938 conversations, and it got them there 85% of the time.
2025 to 2035
Ten years from now.
For every 100 of these jobs in 2025, the BLS projects 102 in 2035. Across all US jobs, about 104.
About 1,400 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 48% of the workAgricultural Technicians11% AI does, against 28% here+5.4% by 2035 · $49,630 · Associate’s degree
- Shares 43% of the workGeological Technicians11% AI does, against 28% here+3.6% by 2035 · $53,350 · Associate’s degree
- Shares 40% of the workEnvironmental Science and Protection Technicians, Including Health18% AI does, against 28% here+6.9% by 2035 · $55,090 · Associate’s degree
The wire
On the wire.
Nothing filed about this job yet. The latest from the Planet 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 0.17, higher than 60% 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, 19-2099 · BLS Employment Projections 2025 to 2035
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