Will AI replace librarians, curators, and archivists?
5 jobs scored. On average 59% of the task time in these jobs still needs a person, and the family averages 71 out of 100 on Still needs a human, where higher is safer.
71
Average Still needs a human score, 0 to 100 ↑ safer. Will AI replace them? A little.
5
Jobs scored in this family
59%
Average share of Task timeHow a job’s working hours divide between its tasks. Tasks that matter more and come up more often get a bigger share.More in the glossary that still needs a person
235k
US workers in these jobs
How the work could shift in Librarians, Curators, and Archivists
The share of US workers in these jobs whose job would sit in each band, from today to 2060.
Today
0%
of US workers in this family are in jobs that mostly need a person (our top band, Nah.)
0% are in jobs AI could largely do (Largely.)
By 2045
0%
of US workers in this family would still be in jobs that mostly need a person (our top band, Nah.)
92% would be in jobs AI could largely do (Largely.)
By 2060
0%
of US workers in this family would still be in jobs that mostly need a person (our top band, Nah.)
100% would be in jobs AI could largely do (Largely.)
Each job's score moves towards the bottom band (Largely: AI could largely do the job) by the year it could be largely automated, slowly at first and faster later, as adoption usually goes. Each job is run as ten scenarios across its replacement range, so every figure mixes early and late outcomes. The model stops at 2060. How the timeline works
Will AI replace the job?Largely.Mostly.Partly.A little.Nah.
Show the data
| Year | Largely | Mostly | Partly | A little | Nah |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Today (2026) | 0.0% | 0.0% | 0.0% | 100.0% | 0.0% |
| 2030 | 0.0% | 5.7% | 55.5% | 38.8% | 0.0% |
| 2035 | 36.0% | 29.5% | 32.9% | 1.6% | 0.0% |
| 2040 | 65.5% | 29.5% | 4.5% | 0.5% | 0.0% |
| 2045 | 91.7% | 7.8% | 0.0% | 0.5% | 0.0% |
| 2050 | 99.0% | 0.5% | 0.0% | 0.5% | 0.0% |
| 2055 | 99.5% | 0.0% | 0.0% | 0.5% | 0.0% |
| 2060 | 99.5% | 0.0% | 0.0% | 0.5% | 0.0% |
Every job in Librarians, Curators, and Archivists, ranked
Librarians and Media Collections SpecialistsEducational Instruction and Library · 25-4022
67↑ saferAI replace? A little.
AI does 15%AI helps 34%Needs a human 51%
20382034–2047
134k
$68,270
CuratorsEducational Instruction and Library · 25-4012
68↑ saferAI replace? A little.
AI does 24%AI helps 27%Needs a human 49%
20372034–2047
12k
$63,420
Library TechniciansEducational Instruction and Library · 25-4031
70↑ saferAI replace? A little.
AI does 10%AI helps 28%Needs a human 62%
20402035–2053
69k
$44,580
ArchivistsEducational Instruction and Library · 25-4011
71↑ saferAI replace? A little.
AI does 3%AI helps 43%Needs a human 54%
20382035–2049
8k
$64,550
Museum Technicians and ConservatorsEducational Instruction and Library · 25-4013
78↑ saferAI replace? A little.
AI does 0%AI helps 20%Needs a human 80%
20442036–2060+
12k
$51,440