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Will AI Replace Ultrasound Technicians? (2026)

The Bureau of Labor Statistics places ultrasound technicians 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 +13.9% over 2025–2035, against 3.5% for all occupations, with about 6,000 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 faster than average.

BLS AI exposure
ModerateBLS EP supplemental table
AI-resilience score
44/100Higher than 49% of jobs · NueCareer
Projected change
+13.9%BLS EP 2025–2035; all jobs 3.5%
Openings a year
6,000BLS EP 2025–2035

The federal measure

How exposed ultrasound technicians 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. Ultrasound Technicians 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

  • Assisting and caring for others4.7/5
    O*NET work activity, importance
  • Face-to-face discussions4.8/5
    O*NET work context, frequency or level
  • Hands-on work with tools and objects5.0/5
    O*NET work context, frequency or level
  • Handling and moving objects3.9/5
    O*NET work activity, importance

What AI reaches first

Routine, repeatable and screen-based work

  • Documenting/recording information4.2/5
    O*NET work activity, importance
  • Repetitive motions4.6/5
    O*NET work context, frequency or level
  • Repeating the same tasks4.1/5
    O*NET work context, frequency or level
  • Processing information3.7/5
    O*NET work activity, importance

The tasks O*NET lists for ultrasound technicians

  • Observe screen during scan to ensure that image produced is satisfactory for diagnostic purposes, making adjustments to equipment as required.
  • Operate ultrasound equipment to produce and record images of the motion, shape, and composition of blood, organs, tissues, or bodily masses, such as fluid accumulations.
  • Observe and care for patients throughout examinations to ensure their safety and comfort.
  • Provide sonogram and oral or written summary of technical findings to physician for use in medical diagnosis.
  • Select appropriate equipment settings and adjust patient positions to obtain the best sites and angles.
  • Prepare patient for exam by explaining procedure, transferring patient to ultrasound table, scrubbing skin and applying gel, and positioning patient properly.

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 +13.9% change in employment over the decade, against 3.5% across all occupations, and about 6,000 openings a year once retirements and career changes are counted. About 90,160 people work in the job today, at a median of $96,590 a year (BLS OEWS, May 2025).

Full diagnostic medical sonographer profile: pay by state, entry route and skills

Options

Related careers less exposed to AI than ultrasound technicians

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. Surgical Assistant

    Healthcare Practitioners and Technical

    Median pay
    $66,800median a year
    Growth
    +6.1%
    Openings / yr
    1,400
    Education
    Certificate
    Low
    BLS AI exposure
    63/100
    resilience

    Assist in operations, under the supervision of surgeons.

  3. 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.

  4. Nurse Anesthetist

    Healthcare Practitioners and Technical

    Median pay
    $236,590median a year
    Growth
    +9.7%
    Openings / yr
    2,400
    Education
    Master's
    Low
    BLS AI exposure
    55/100
    resilience

    Administer anesthesia, monitor patient's vital signs, and oversee patient recovery from anesthesia.

  5. 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.

  6. Anesthesiologist 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
    47/100
    resilience

    Assist anesthesiologists in the administration of anesthesia for surgical and non-surgical procedures.

Will AI replace surgical technologists?Will AI replace respiratory therapists?Will AI replace nurse anesthetists?Will AI replace dental hygienists?

Questions

Will AI Replace Ultrasound Technicians? FAQ

Will AI replace ultrasound technicians?

Unlikely. BLS rates the work's exposure to AI as moderate, below the middle of the pack, and 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 +13.9% over 2025–2035, against 3.5% for all occupations, with about 6,000 openings a year.

How exposed are ultrasound technicians to AI?

BLS sorts 786 occupations into four relative categories: low, moderate, high and very high. Ultrasound Technicians 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 diagnostic medical sonographer'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, repetitive motions and repeating the same tasks. The parts that hold up best are assisting and caring for others, face-to-face discussions 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 diagnostic medical sonographer a safe career from AI?

On NueCareer's AI-resilience score, built from O*NET work activities, ultrasound technicians score 44 out of 100, higher than 49% of the occupations we score. The job pays a median of $96,590 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 ultrasound technicians are less exposed to AI?

Surgical Technologist (low exposure, $64,650 median), Surgical Assistant (low exposure, $66,800 median), Respiratory Therapist (low exposure, $82,280 median), Nurse Anesthetist (low exposure, $236,590 median). Each is in a lower BLS exposure category than ultrasound technicians, 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.