AI's Impact on Jobs: Top 10 At-Risk & Safest Occupations Revealed
New research from Microsoft offers a revealing glimpse into how artificial intelligence is reshaping the modern workforce, identifying specific occupations most and least susceptible to its influence. The study, detailed in a report titled “Working with AI: Measuring the Occupational Implications of Generative AI,” delves into how professionals across various fields are adopting AI and the tangible effects on their daily tasks.
To gauge AI’s occupational implications, researchers meticulously analyzed data from 200,000 anonymized conversations between users and Microsoft Bing Copilot, a publicly available generative AI system, collected between January and September 2024. This extensive dataset allowed the team to assess how individuals utilized AI in their jobs, the efficacy of the results, and the specific roles held by the users. From this analysis, an “AI applicability score” was computed for each occupation, providing a metric for the degree to which AI could integrate into or transform a given role.
The findings indicate that the most prevalent work activities for which people leveraged AI involved information gathering and writing. Consequently, occupations characterized by extensive “knowledge work” demonstrated the highest AI applicability scores. This includes groups such as computer and mathematical professions, and office and administrative support roles, as well as sales positions where the core activities revolve around providing and communicating information.
Based on these applicability scores, the research identified ten occupations where AI integration is poised to have the most significant impact. These include Interpreters and Translators, Historians, Passenger Attendants, Sales Representatives of Services, Writers and Authors, Customer Service Representatives, CNC Tool Programmers, Telephone Operators, Ticket Agents and Travel Clerks, and Broadcast Announcers and Radio DJs. A common thread among these roles is their heavy reliance on processing, synthesizing, and communicating information, tasks where generative AI has shown considerable proficiency.
Conversely, the study also pinpointed ten occupations least likely to be fundamentally altered by AI. These roles typically demand physical presence, fine motor skills, complex human interaction, or the ability to navigate unpredictable environments. The occupations identified as having the lowest AI applicability scores are Phlebotomists, Nursing Assistants, Hazardous Materials Removal Workers, Helpers—Painters, Plasterers, Embalmers, Plant and System Operators, Oral and Maxillofacial Surgeons, Automotive Glass Installers and Repairers, Ship Engineers, and Tire Repairers and Changers. These professions often involve hands-on work, direct physical care, problem-solving in dynamic real-world settings, or require a level of human empathy and judgment that current AI systems cannot replicate.
The Microsoft research underscores a growing trend: AI’s immediate impact is most pronounced in roles centered on information processing and communication, rather than those requiring intricate physical dexterity, on-site problem-solving, or deep interpersonal engagement. While AI will undoubtedly continue to evolve, these findings suggest a clear demarcation in its current transformative power across the professional landscape.