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Will AI Replace Medical and Clinical Laboratory Technologists? (2026)

The Bureau of Labor Statistics places medical and clinical laboratory technologists in its moderate AI exposure category, below the middle of the pack: some of the work overlaps with what AI can do, much of it does not. BLS projects employment to change by +2.7% over 2025–2035, against 3.5% for all occupations, with about 20,800 openings a year.

Short answer

Unlikely. BLS rates the work's exposure to AI as moderate, below the middle of the pack, and still projects employment to grow.

BLS AI exposure
ModerateBLS EP supplemental table
AI-resilience score
40/100Higher than 40% of jobs · NueCareer
Projected change
+2.7%BLS EP 2025–2035; all jobs 3.5%
Openings a year
20,800BLS EP 2025–2035

The federal measure

How exposed medical and clinical laboratory technologists 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. Medical and Clinical Laboratory Technologists land in the moderate category: below the middle of the pack: some of the work overlaps with what AI can do, much of it does not.

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. Moderate · this job194 occupations · 25%
  3. High190 occupations · 24%
  4. Very high199 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

  • Face-to-face discussions4.6/5
    O*NET work context, frequency or level
  • Inspecting equipment, structures, or materials4.8/5
    O*NET work activity, importance
  • Repairing and maintaining mechanical equipment3.7/5
    O*NET work activity, importance
  • Training and teaching others4.2/5
    O*NET work activity, importance

What AI reaches first

Routine, repeatable and screen-based work

  • Processing information4.6/5
    O*NET work activity, importance
  • Documenting/recording information4.5/5
    O*NET work activity, importance
  • Repeating the same tasks4.4/5
    O*NET work context, frequency or level
  • Evaluating information to determine compliance with standards4.8/5
    O*NET work activity, importance

The tasks O*NET lists for medical and clinical laboratory technologists

  • Analyze laboratory findings to check the accuracy of the results.
  • Set up, clean, and maintain laboratory equipment.
  • Enter data from analysis of medical tests or clinical results into computer for storage.
  • Analyze samples of biological material for chemical content or reaction.
  • Provide technical information about test results to physicians, family members, or researchers.
  • Collect and study blood samples to determine the number of cells, their morphology, or their blood group, blood type, or compatibility for transfusion purposes, using microscopic techniques.

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 +2.7% change in employment over the decade, against 3.5% across all occupations, and about 20,800 openings a year once retirements and career changes are counted. About 332,940 people work in the job today, at a median of $62,930 a year (BLS OEWS, May 2025).

Full medical and clinical laboratory technologist profile: pay by state, entry route and skills

Options

Related careers less exposed to AI than medical and clinical laboratory technologists

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. Surgical Technologist

    Healthcare Practitioners and Technical

    Median pay
    $64,650median a year
    Growth
    +5.0%
    Openings / yr
    7,100
    Education
    Certificate
    Low
    BLS AI exposure
    65/100
    resilience

    Assist in operations, under the supervision of surgeons, registered nurses, or other surgical personnel.

  2. Respiratory Therapist

    Healthcare Practitioners and Technical

    Median pay
    $82,280median a year
    Growth
    +8.5%
    Openings / yr
    8,600
    Education
    Associate's
    Low
    BLS AI exposure
    56/100
    resilience

    Assess, treat, and care for patients with breathing disorders.

  3. Dental Hygienist

    Healthcare Practitioners and Technical

    Median pay
    $98,100median a year
    Growth
    +8.0%
    Openings / yr
    15,000
    Education
    Associate's
    Low
    BLS AI exposure
    53/100
    resilience

    Administer oral hygiene care to patients.

  4. Phlebotomist

    Healthcare Support

    Median pay
    $45,230median a year
    Growth
    +6.8%
    Openings / yr
    18,000
    Education
    Certificate
    Low
    BLS AI exposure
    51/100
    resilience

    Draw blood for tests, transfusions, donations, or research.

  5. Licensed Practical Nurse

    Healthcare Practitioners and Technical

    Median pay
    $64,400median a year
    Growth
    +3.0%
    Openings / yr
    51,800
    Education
    Certificate
    Low
    BLS AI exposure
    46/100
    resilience

    Care for ill, injured, or convalescing patients or persons with disabilities in hospitals, nursing homes, clinics, private homes, group homes, and similar institutions.

  6. Physician Assistant

    Healthcare Practitioners and Technical

    Median pay
    $135,880median a year
    Growth
    +21.1%
    Openings / yr
    11,500
    Education
    Master's
    Low
    BLS AI exposure
    41/100
    resilience

    Provide healthcare services typically performed by a physician, under the supervision of a physician.

Will AI replace surgical technologists?Will AI replace respiratory therapists?Will AI replace dental hygienists?Will AI replace phlebotomists?Will AI replace licensed practical nurses?Will AI replace physician assistants?

Questions

Will AI Replace Medical and Clinical Laboratory Technologists? FAQ

Will AI replace medical and clinical laboratory technologists?

Unlikely. BLS rates the work's exposure to AI as moderate, below the middle of the pack, and still projects employment to grow. 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 +2.7% over 2025–2035, against 3.5% for all occupations, with about 20,800 openings a year.

How exposed are medical and clinical laboratory technologists to AI?

BLS sorts 786 occupations into four relative categories: low, moderate, high and very high. Medical and Clinical Laboratory Technologists are in the moderate category, alongside 193 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 medical and clinical laboratory technologist's job can AI do?

In O*NET's description of the work, the parts that overlap most with what AI handles well are processing information, documenting/recording information and repeating the same tasks. The parts that hold up best are face-to-face discussions, inspecting equipment, structures, or materials and repairing and maintaining mechanical 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 medical and clinical laboratory technologist a safe career from AI?

On NueCareer's AI-resilience score, built from O*NET work activities, medical and clinical laboratory technologists score 40 out of 100, higher than 40% of the occupations we score. The job pays a median of $62,930 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 medical and clinical laboratory technologists are less exposed to AI?

Surgical Technologist (low exposure, $64,650 median), Respiratory Therapist (low exposure, $82,280 median), Dental Hygienist (low exposure, $98,100 median), Phlebotomist (low exposure, $45,230 median). Each is in a lower BLS exposure category than medical and clinical laboratory technologists, 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.