Will AI replace bioinformatics technicians?

Some tasks are already handled by AI or machines; the rest still needs a person. About 3h 38m of an 8-hour shift goes to tasks that AI or robots largely take over. The other 4h 22m (55%) stays with people. Separately, BLS expects about 7.1% more of these jobs by 2035 (all jobs: +3.5%).

AI shows up regularly in 9 of 19 tasks, about 3h 38m of a typical shift. The biggest ones:

• Extend existing software programs, web-based interactive tools, or database queries as sequence management and analysis needs evolve. (37m a shift, AI mostly does it alone)
• Conduct quality analyses of data inputs and resulting analyses or predictions. (37m a shift, AI mostly does it alone)
• Develop or maintain applications that process biologically based data into searchable databases for purposes of analysis, calculation, or presentation. (37m a shift, AI mostly does it alone)
• Write computer programs or scripts to be used in querying databases. (31m a shift, AI mostly does it alone)
• Develop or apply data mining and machine learning algorithms. (25m a shift, AI mostly does it alone)

4h 22m of a typical shift, or 55%, goes to tasks with no AI or robot evidence yet. No AI usage or robot deployment has shown up for these so far. The biggest:

• Analyze or manipulate bioinformatics data using software packages, statistical applications, or data mining techniques. (1h 46m a shift)
• Confer with researchers, clinicians, or information technology staff to determine data needs and programming requirements and to provide assistance with database-related research activities. (37m a shift)
• Enter or retrieve information from structural databases, protein sequence motif databases, mutation databases, genomic databases or gene expression databases. (31m a shift)
• Participate in the preparation of reports or scientific publications. (25m a shift)
• Maintain awareness of new and emerging computational methods and technologies. (19m a shift)

For the 5 tasks in this job where AI shows up and timing data exists, a typical request takes about 10h 35m for a person alone and about 1h 7m with AI. These are Claude's own estimates from real conversations in April and May 2026 (Anthropic Economic Index). They describe single requests, not whole workdays, and time saved on a task doesn't mean jobs are cut. The biggest gaps:

• Extend existing software programs, web-based interactive tools, or database queries as sequence management and analysis needs evolve (about 13h 37m alone, 55m with AI)
• Write computer programs or scripts to be used in querying databases (about 11h 2m alone, 1h 11m with AI)
• Create data management or error-checking procedures and user manuals (about 10h 35m alone, 1h 7m with AI)

On Indeed, job postings in the Data & Analytics sector are at 64% of their February 2020 level (all U.S. postings: 104%), up 8.7% from a year earlier, as of Oct 9, 2026. BLS separately expects about 200 openings a year in this job through 2035. Across all U.S. postings, 7.3% now mention AI skills. Sector postings cover more than this one job and move for many reasons besides AI.

The median pay is about $81,490 a year ($39.18 an hour), 60% above the median for all U.S. jobs ($50,980). Most people in this job earn between $47,980 and $154,580 a year; that range covers the middle 80%. Pay figures are from BLS, May 2025, and vary a lot by state and employer. Pick a state to compare:

BLS projects growth of 7.1% from 2025 to 2035, compared with 3.5% growth for all jobs. That's about 4,200 jobs in 2035. It expects about 200 openings a year, mostly from people retiring or changing careers. These projections don't single out AI as a cause.

About 3,720 people in the U.S., roughly 0.00% of all workers (BLS, May 2025). That makes it the 743rd largest of the 796 jobs on this site. BLS expects about 4,200 in 2035.

The most common requirement is a bachelor's degree: about 51% of people in the job said so in the official O*NET survey. O*NET rates the job at level 4 of 5 for preparation, which usually means: bachelor's degree. Requirements vary by state and employer, especially for licensed work.

These come from the job's official skill ratings and from the tasks that AI and robots touch least today. Building them keeps you strong in the parts of the work that still need a person:

• Skills that matter more here than in most jobs: Programming, Mathematics, Science, Systems Analysis
• Get strong at the parts of the job that stay with people (listed above), which take 4h 22m of a typical shift
• Tools employers list: Apache Subversion SVN, C, C++, Git, Hypertext markup language HTML
• Learn to use AI well on the tasks where it already shows up in this job (listed above)

These use similar skills. Matches come from 109 official ratings of skills, knowledge and work activities, and each needs the same or less preparation unless the official list relates the jobs directly:

• Database Architects (5h touched, $140k median pay)

Each task carries its own evidence label. For this job: 9 observed in real AI use, 10 with no AI or robot evidence found. The minutes per task are estimates, not measured hours, and "no evidence" doesn't prove a task is safe.