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Will AI Replace 911 Dispatchers? (2026)

The Bureau of Labor Statistics places 911 dispatchers in its very high AI exposure category, among the occupations most exposed to current AI. BLS projects employment to change by +3.7% over 2025–2035, against 3.5% for all occupations, with about 9,000 openings a year.

Short answer

AI will reshape this job more than most, but BLS does not forecast it disappearing. The exposure is among the highest BLS measured, yet it still projects employment to grow faster than average.

BLS AI exposure
Very highBLS EP supplemental table
AI-resilience score
32/100Higher than 26% of jobs · NueCareer
Projected change
+3.7%BLS EP 2025–2035; all jobs 3.5%
Openings a year
9,000BLS EP 2025–2035

The federal measure

How exposed 911 dispatchers are to AI

The Bureau of Labor Statistics publishes a relative AI exposure category for each occupation it projects, built from five public measures of where AI could be, or already is, used to assist with or complete the work. 911 Dispatchers land in the very high category: among the occupations most exposed to current AI.

Where this job sits on the BLS scale

786 occupations in the NueCareer bank, in BLS's four relative categories; width shows how many fall in each

  1. Low203 occupations · 26%
  2. Moderate194 occupations · 25%
  3. High190 occupations · 24%
  4. Very high · this job199 occupations · 25%

Source: BLS Employment Projections, AI exposure categories supplemental table.

  1. Exposure is relative. The categories rank occupations against each other; they are not a probability that a job is automated.
  2. BLS says exposure does not imply job loss, productivity gains, automation probability or wage effects. A highly exposed job can still grow if AI makes the people in it more productive.
  3. The classification reflects AI capabilities as the underlying studies measured them. Read the BLS method and limitations.

Inside the work

What AI can and cannot do in this job

O*NET rates how important each work activity is to an occupation and how often each working condition comes up. The ratings below are the ones that move the job's NueCareer AI-resilience score the most: the ones that pull it up, and the ones that pull it down. Only ratings clearly above the midpoint count.

What holds up

Physical, hands-on and person-to-person work

  • Assisting and caring for others4.2/5
    O*NET work activity, importance
  • Performing for or working directly with the public4.4/5
    O*NET work activity, importance
  • Hands-on work with tools and objects4.6/5
    O*NET work context, frequency or level
  • Dealing with the public5.0/5
    O*NET work context, frequency or level

What AI reaches first

Routine, repeatable and screen-based work

  • Documenting/recording information4.8/5
    O*NET work activity, importance
  • Processing information4.5/5
    O*NET work activity, importance
  • Repeating the same tasks4.9/5
    O*NET work context, frequency or level
  • Working with computers4.9/5
    O*NET work activity, importance

The tasks O*NET lists for 911 dispatchers

  • Question callers to determine their locations and the nature of their problems to determine type of response needed.
  • Answer routine inquiries, and refer calls not requiring dispatches to appropriate departments and agencies.
  • Learn material and pass required tests for certification.
  • Determine response requirements and relative priorities of situations, and dispatch units in accordance with established procedures.
  • Read and effectively interpret small-scale maps and information from a computer screen to determine locations and provide directions.
  • Receive incoming telephone or alarm system calls regarding emergency and non-emergency police and fire service, emergency ambulance service, information, and after-hours calls for departments within a city.

O*NET 31.0 Database task statements, most important first.

The jobs

Will there still be jobs?

Exposure says where AI meets the work. The BLS projection says what the labor market is expected to do over 2025–2035. BLS projects +3.7% change in employment over the decade, against 3.5% across all occupations, and about 9,000 openings a year once retirements and career changes are counted. About 102,500 people work in the job today, at a median of $53,040 a year (BLS OEWS, May 2025).

Full public safety telecommunicator profile: pay by state, entry route and skills

Options

Related careers less exposed to AI than 911 dispatchers

Careers O*NET lists as related to the work, or in the same field at similar pay, that BLS places in a lower exposure category.

  1. Paramedic

    Healthcare Practitioners and Technical

    Median pay
    $60,600median a year
    Growth
    +5.7%
    Openings / yr
    4,300
    Education
    Certificate
    Low
    BLS AI exposure
    67/100
    resilience

    Administer basic or advanced emergency medical care and assess injuries and illnesses.

  2. Ambulance Driver and Attendant, Except Emergency Medical Technicians

    Transportation and Material Moving

    Median pay
    $35,450median a year
    Growth
    −1.3%
    Openings / yr
    1,400
    Education
    High school
    Low
    BLS AI exposure
    65/100
    resilience

    Drive ambulance or assist ambulance driver in transporting sick, injured, or convalescent persons.

  3. Transit and Railroad Police

    Protective Service

    Median pay
    $90,230median a year
    Growth
    +3.2%
    Openings / yr
    300
    Education
    High school
    Moderate
    BLS AI exposure
    59/100
    resilience

    Protect and police railroad and transit property, employees, or passengers.

  4. First-Line Supervisor of Security Workers

    Protective Service

    Median pay
    $55,940median a year
    Growth
    +3.7%
    Openings / yr
    6,800
    Education
    High school
    Moderate
    BLS AI exposure
    52/100
    resilience

    Directly supervise and coordinate activities of security workers and security guards.

  5. Police Officer

    Protective Service

    Median pay
    $76,210median a year
    Growth
    +3.5%
    Openings / yr
    51,500
    Education
    High school
    High
    BLS AI exposure
    60/100
    resilience

    Maintain order and protect life and property by enforcing local, tribal, state, or federal laws and ordinances.

  6. Airfield Operations Specialist

    Transportation and Material Moving

    Median pay
    $56,850median a year
    Growth
    +7.8%
    Openings / yr
    1,500
    Education
    High school
    High
    BLS AI exposure
    51/100
    resilience

    Ensure the safe takeoff and landing of commercial and military aircraft.

Will AI replace paramedics?Will AI replace police officers?

Questions

Will AI Replace 911 Dispatchers? FAQ

Will AI replace 911 dispatchers?

AI will reshape this job more than most, but BLS does not forecast it disappearing. The exposure is among the highest BLS measured, yet it still projects employment to grow faster than average. BLS defines exposure as AI being able to assist with or complete some of the work, and says it does not imply job loss, productivity gains or wage effects. BLS projects employment to change by +3.7% over 2025–2035, against 3.5% for all occupations, with about 9,000 openings a year.

How exposed are 911 dispatchers to AI?

BLS sorts 786 occupations into four relative categories: low, moderate, high and very high. 911 Dispatchers are in the very high category, alongside 198 other occupations. The categories combine five public measures of where AI could be or already is used, and they compare occupations with each other rather than giving an absolute risk.

What parts of a public safety telecommunicator's job can AI do?

In O*NET's description of the work, the parts that overlap most with what AI handles well are documenting/recording information, processing information and repeating the same tasks. The parts that hold up best are assisting and caring for others, performing for or working directly with the public and hands-on work with tools and objects. These come from O*NET ratings of how important each activity is to the job, read through NueCareer's AI-resilience method.

Is being a public safety telecommunicator a safe career from AI?

On NueCareer's AI-resilience score, built from O*NET work activities, 911 dispatchers score 32 out of 100, higher than 26% of the occupations we score. The job pays a median of $53,040 a year (BLS OEWS, May 2025). No job is fully safe from technological change, but the federal exposure category and the projected openings are the two numbers worth weighing.

What careers similar to 911 dispatchers are less exposed to AI?

Paramedic (low exposure, $60,600 median), Ambulance Driver and Attendant, Except Emergency Medical Technicians (low exposure, $35,450 median), Transit and Railroad Police (moderate exposure, $90,230 median), First-Line Supervisor of Security Workers (moderate exposure, $55,940 median). Each is in a lower BLS exposure category than 911 dispatchers, and most are listed by O*NET as related to the work.

The AI exposure category is the Bureau of Labor Statistics'. The AI-resilience score and the activity breakdown are NueCareer's analysis of O*NET 31.0 Database data (method), not a federal figure. More: jobs most exposed to AI, jobs least exposed to AI, or check any job.