Will AI replace Lighting Technicians?

What this score means

Lighting Technicians is among the least exposed roles in Media & Creative. Most of what the job involves still sits outside what current AI can do, even as the tools around it keep changing. At 20 out of 100 it scores 17 points below the Media & Creative average of 37. Across the 2 sources behind this baseline, individual estimates run from 9 to 31, so the score is a weighted consensus rather than any single figure.

The number is a consensus estimate for the typical version of the role, built from published academic and industry research scored occupation by occupation. It is not a prediction about any individual. How scoring works

What this job actually involves

Exposure follows the work itself rather than the job title, so it is worth seeing what the role is made of. These are the tasks O*NET records for Lighting Technicians, most central first, showing 12 of 16.

• 01Assess safety of wiring or equipment set-up to determine the risk of fire or electrical shock.
• 02Consult with lighting director or production staff to determine lighting requirements.
• 03Disassemble and store equipment after performances.
• 04Install color effects or image patterns, such as color filters, onto lighting fixtures.
• 05Install electrical cables or wire fixtures.
• 06Load, unload, or position lighting equipment.
• 07Match light fixture settings, such as brightness and color, to lighting design plans.
• 08Notify supervisors when major lighting equipment repairs are needed.
• 09Operate manual or automated systems to control lighting throughout productions.
• 10Patch or wire lights to dimmers or other electronic consoles.
• 11Perform minor repairs or routine maintenance on lighting equipment, such as replacing lamps or damaged color filters.
• 12Program lighting consoles or load automated lighting control systems onto consoles.

Task statements from O*NET by the National Center for O*NET Development, used under CC BY 4.0. The tasks are descriptive; the exposure score above is ours.

The research behind this score

This baseline aggregates 2 research sources that scored Lighting Technicians for AI and automation exposure. More recent, higher confidence studies carry more weight in the final number.

• 01Generative AI and Jobs: A Refined Global Index of Occupational Exposure · 2025
• 02GPTs are GPTs: Labor Market Impact Potential of LLMs · 2024

Also covers

Dimmer Board Operator · Electrical Lighting Technician (ELT) · Entertainment Lighting Technician · Gaffer · Lamp Operator · Light Technician (Light Tech) · Lighting Controls Technician · Lighting Designer and related titles

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