Will AI replace Firefighters?
Estimated risk score: 14 out of 100
Very low replacement risk
Estimate from published task research, not reviewed by a person · how we estimate
Within about 19 points for 4 in 5 of the jobs we checked (0 to 33).
For the occupation as a whole, from ratings of its 30 O*NET tasks published in 2023 and calibrated to our hand scores. A specialty inside it can sit higher or lower.
O*NET-SOC 33-2011.00 · Protective Service
Tasks rated in 2023 as ones AI could do or speed up
Tasks a GPT-4-class model could do, or do in half the time or less: 3 of its 30 rated tasks. In O*NET’s words.
- Prepare written reports that detail specifics of fire incidents.
- Assess fires and situations and report conditions to superiors to receive instructions, using two-way radios.
- Maintain contact with fire dispatchers at all times to notify them of the need for additional firefighters and supplies, or to detail any difficulties encountered.
Tasks rated in 2023 as not sped up by AI
Tasks such a model was rated as not speeding up or taking over: 25 of its 30 rated tasks; the first 6 are shown. In O*NET’s words.
- Clean and maintain fire stations and fire fighting equipment and apparatus.
- Collaborate with other firefighters as a member of a firefighting crew.
- Collaborate with police to respond to accidents, disasters, and arson investigation calls.
- Create openings in buildings for ventilation or entrance, using axes, chisels, crowbars, electric saws, or core cutters.
- Dress with equipment such as fire-resistant clothing and breathing apparatus.
- Drive and operate fire fighting vehicles and equipment.
What the job is
Control and extinguish fires or respond to emergency situations where life, property, or the environment is at risk. Duties may include fire prevention, emergency medical service, hazardous material response, search and rescue, and disaster assistance.
Also called: Fire Engineer, Wildland Firefighter, Fire Equipment Operator, Hot Shot, Fire Tech, Ladderman, Fire Medic, Tiller Man.
Source. This site includes information from the O*NET 30.1 Database by the U.S. Department of Labor, Employment and Training Administration (USDOL/ETA). Used under the CC BY 4.0 license. O*NET® is a trademark of USDOL/ETA. USDOL/ETA has not approved, endorsed, or tested these modifications. (O*NET, CC BY 4.0.) Task ratings: Eloundou, Manning, Mishkin and Rock (2023), “GPTs are GPTs: An Early Look at the Labor Market Impact Potential of Large Language Models”, data used under the MIT licence (licence texts). Our change: we averaged the ratings over this occupation’s tasks and calibrated them to our 0–100 scale. It is not a prediction about any one person and not career advice. Disagree? Write to hello@yourstopwashit.com. How we estimate