Short answer
Not replaced, but changed. BLS rates the exposure as high, so AI can help with a real share of the work, yet it still projects employment to grow faster than average.
AI and jobs
Will AI Replace First-Line Supervisors of Mechanics, Installers, and Repairers? (2026)
The Bureau of Labor Statistics places first-line supervisors of mechanics, installers, and repairers in its high AI exposure category, above the middle of the pack: a substantial share of the work overlaps with what AI can do. BLS projects employment to change by +4.1% over 2025–2035, against 3.5% for all occupations, with about 48,900 openings a year.
- BLS AI exposure
- HighBLS EP supplemental table
- AI-resilience score
- 54/100Higher than 72% of jobs · NueCareer
- Projected change
- +4.1%BLS EP 2025–2035; all jobs 3.5%
- Openings a year
- 48,900BLS EP 2025–2035
The federal measure
How exposed first-line supervisors of mechanics, installers, and repairers 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. First-Line Supervisors of Mechanics, Installers, and Repairers land in the high category: above the middle of the pack: a substantial share of the work overlaps with what AI can do.
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
- Low203 occupations · 26%
- Moderate194 occupations · 25%
- High · this job190 occupations · 24%
- Very high199 occupations · 25%
Source: BLS Employment Projections, AI exposure categories supplemental table.
- Exposure is relative. The categories rank occupations against each other; they are not a probability that a job is automated.
- 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.
- 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
- Face-to-face discussions4.5/5O*NET work context, frequency or level
- Repairing and maintaining mechanical equipment3.7/5O*NET work activity, importance
- Operating vehicles, mechanized devices, or equipment4.0/5O*NET work activity, importance
- Inspecting equipment, structures, or materials4.0/5O*NET work activity, importance
What AI reaches first
Routine, repeatable and screen-based work
- Documenting/recording information3.9/5O*NET work activity, importance
- Evaluating information to determine compliance with standards4.2/5O*NET work activity, importance
- Repeating the same tasks3.9/5O*NET work context, frequency or level
- Processing information3.7/5O*NET work activity, importance
The tasks O*NET lists for first-line supervisors of mechanics, installers, and repairers
- Requisition materials and supplies, such as tools, equipment, or replacement parts.
- Counsel employees about work-related issues and assist employees to correct job-skill deficiencies.
- Inspect and monitor work areas, examine tools and equipment, and provide employee safety training to prevent, detect, and correct unsafe conditions or violations of procedures and safety rules.
- Monitor employees' work levels and review work performance.
- Examine objects, systems, or facilities and analyze information to determine needed installations, services, or repairs.
- Conduct or arrange for worker training in safety, repair, or maintenance techniques, operational procedures, or equipment use.
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 +4.1% change in employment over the decade, against 3.5% across all occupations, and about 48,900 openings a year once retirements and career changes are counted. About 617,500 people work in the job today, at a median of $79,860 a year (BLS OEWS, May 2025).
Options
Related careers less exposed to AI than first-line supervisors of mechanics, installers, and repairers
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.
Electrical Power-Line Installer and Repairer
Installation, Maintenance, and Repair
- Median pay
- $95,320median a year
- Growth
- +10.3%
- Openings / yr
- 10,900
- Education
- High school
- Low
- BLS AI exposure
- 76/100
- resilience
Install or repair cables or wires used in electrical power or distribution systems.
Mobile Heavy Equipment Mechanic, Except Engines
Installation, Maintenance, and Repair
- Median pay
- $65,510median a year
- Growth
- +6.7%
- Openings / yr
- 15,000
- Education
- High school
- Low
- BLS AI exposure
- 66/100
- resilience
Diagnose, adjust, repair, or overhaul mobile mechanical, hydraulic, and pneumatic equipment, such as cranes, bulldozers, graders, and conveyors, used in construction, logging, and mining.
Aircraft Mechanic
Installation, Maintenance, and Repair
- Median pay
- $79,870median a year
- Growth
- +5.4%
- Openings / yr
- 11,400
- Education
- Certificate
- Low
- BLS AI exposure
- 59/100
- resilience
Diagnose, adjust, repair, or overhaul aircraft engines and assemblies, such as hydraulic and pneumatic systems.
First-Line Supervisor of Farming, Fishing, and Forestry Workers
Farming, Fishing, and Forestry
- Median pay
- $59,320median a year
- Growth
- +3.8%
- Openings / yr
- 7,200
- Education
- High school
- Low
- BLS AI exposure
- 57/100
- resilience
Directly supervise and coordinate the activities of agricultural, forestry, aquacultural, and related workers.
First-Line Supervisor of Construction Trades and Extraction Workers
Construction and Extraction
- Median pay
- $79,920median a year
- Growth
- +5.0%
- Openings / yr
- 67,000
- Education
- High school
- Moderate
- BLS AI exposure
- 62/100
- resilience
Directly supervise and coordinate activities of construction or extraction workers.
Industrial Machinery Mechanic
Installation, Maintenance, and Repair
- Median pay
- $64,520median a year
- Growth
- +17.8%
- Openings / yr
- 44,400
- Education
- High school
- Moderate
- BLS AI exposure
- 55/100
- resilience
Repair, install, adjust, or maintain industrial production and processing machinery or refinery and pipeline distribution systems.
Questions
Will AI Replace First-Line Supervisors of Mechanics, Installers, and Repairers? FAQ
Will AI replace first-line supervisors of mechanics, installers, and repairers?
Not replaced, but changed. BLS rates the exposure as high, so AI can help with a real share of the work, 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 +4.1% over 2025–2035, against 3.5% for all occupations, with about 48,900 openings a year.
How exposed are first-line supervisors of mechanics, installers, and repairers to AI?
BLS sorts 786 occupations into four relative categories: low, moderate, high and very high. First-Line Supervisors of Mechanics, Installers, and Repairers are in the high category, alongside 189 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 first-line supervisor of mechanics, installers, and repairers'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, evaluating information to determine compliance with standards and repeating the same tasks. The parts that hold up best are face-to-face discussions, repairing and maintaining mechanical equipment and operating vehicles, mechanized devices, or equipment. 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 first-line supervisor of mechanics, installers, and repairers a safe career from AI?
On NueCareer's AI-resilience score, built from O*NET work activities, first-line supervisors of mechanics, installers, and repairers score 54 out of 100, higher than 72% of the occupations we score. The job pays a median of $79,860 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 first-line supervisors of mechanics, installers, and repairers are less exposed to AI?
Electrical Power-Line Installer and Repairer (low exposure, $95,320 median), Mobile Heavy Equipment Mechanic, Except Engines (low exposure, $65,510 median), Aircraft Mechanic (low exposure, $79,870 median), First-Line Supervisor of Farming, Fishing, and Forestry Workers (low exposure, $59,320 median). Each is in a lower BLS exposure category than first-line supervisors of mechanics, installers, and repairers, 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.