Skip to content
AI Job Risk

Occupation baseline · Research consensus

Will AI replace Surveying and Mapping Technicians?

Lower risk

Baseline AI displacement risk for Surveying and Mapping Technicians, aggregated from 5 research sources.

What this score means

Surveying and Mapping Technicians leans toward the safer end for Engineering. Parts of the role touch tasks AI is getting good at, but the core still depends on hands on work or judgment that resists automation. At 39 out of 100 it scores 3 points above the Engineering average of 36. Across the 5 sources behind this baseline, individual estimates run from 14 to 58, 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 Surveying and Mapping Technicians, most central first, showing 12 of 30.

  • 01Position and hold the vertical rods, or targets, that theodolite operators use for sighting to measure angles, distances, and elevations.
  • 02Check all layers of maps to ensure accuracy, identifying and marking errors and making corrections.
  • 03Design or develop information databases that include geographic or topographic data.
  • 04Monitor mapping work or the updating of maps to ensure accuracy, inclusion of new or changed information, or compliance with rules and regulations.
  • 05Produce or update overlay maps to show information boundaries, water locations, or topographic features on various base maps or at different scales.
  • 06Determine scales, line sizes, or colors to be used for hard copies of computerized maps, using plotters.
  • 07Compile information necessary to stake projects for construction, using engineering plans.
  • 08Identify and compile database information to create requested maps.
  • 09Operate and manage land-information computer systems, performing tasks such as storing data, making inquiries, and producing plots and reports.
  • 10Compare survey computations with applicable standards to determine adequacy of data.
  • 11Analyze aerial photographs to detect and interpret significant military, industrial, resource, or topographical data.
  • 12Research and combine existing property information to describe property boundaries in relation to adjacent properties, taking into account parcel splits, combinations, or land boundary adjustments.

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 5 research sources that scored Surveying and Mapping Technicians for AI and automation exposure. More recent, higher confidence studies carry more weight in the final number.

Common questions

How likely is AI to replace Surveying and Mapping Technicians?
Published research puts Surveying and Mapping Technicians at 39 out of 100 for AI displacement risk, in the lower risk band. The number is a weighted consensus of 5 research sources and describes the typical version of the role, not any individual.
Do researchers agree on the risk for Surveying and Mapping Technicians?
Only partly. Individual estimates for Surveying and Mapping Technicians run from 14 to 58 out of 100 across the 5 sources behind this score, so the single number smooths over real disagreement. More recent and higher confidence studies carry more weight in it.
Which engineering roles face similar AI exposure?
The closest published engineering roles to Surveying and Mapping Technicians by score are Solar Energy Systems Engineers (39/100), Validation Engineers (39/100), and Architect (40/100). Each has its own page with the research behind its number.

Also covers

Aerial Photograph Interpreter · Aerotriangulation Specialist · Assessment Technician · Ax Survey Worker · CAD Technician (Computer Aided Design Technician) · Cartographic Aide · Cartographic Drafter · Cartographic Technician and related titles

Estimated displacement window

The dated estimate for this role is included in the full personalised report.

Your number is not the baseline

Seniority, sector, and how much of your day is routine all shift the score. Answer a few questions and get your personal risk score free, no signup.

Get my personal score

Free · No credit card · No signup

More engineering occupations

All engineering occupations

Informational guidance based on published research, not professional career or financial advice. Scores update as new research is ingested.