Will AI replace geothermal technicians?

Unlikely, though parts of the work are changing. About 51m of an 8-hour shift goes to tasks touched by robots. The other 7h 9m (89%) stays with people. Separately, BLS expects about 2.6% more of these jobs by 2035 (all jobs: +3.5%).

None of this job's tasks show regular AI use yet. That can mean the work is hands-on or in person, or simply that it rarely comes up in AI usage data.

For some tasks, yes. Robots have done 2 of this job's tasks in workplaces like this one, about 51m of a typical shift. 7 more tasks have only been done in factory setups built around the machine, so they stay with people here. For 8 physical tasks, no robot has shown it can do the work yet.

• Collect and record data associated with operating geothermal power plants or well fields. (26m a shift; e.g. Spot (with Orbit software), operated by J-POWER / Tohoku Enterprise, in use)
• Operate equipment, such as excavators, backhoes, rock hammers, trench compactors, pavement saws, grout mixers or pumps, geothermal loop reels, and coil tubing units (CTU). (26m a shift; e.g. Built Robotics Exosystem excavators (used by Bechtel), in use)

7h 9m of a typical shift, or 89%, 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:

• Monitor and adjust operations of geothermal power plant equipment or systems. (1h 4m a shift)
• Install, maintain, or repair ground or water source-coupled heat pumps to heat and cool residential or commercial building air or water. (1h 4m a shift)
• Prepare and maintain logs, reports, or other documentation of work performed. (38m a shift)
• Identify and correct malfunctions of geothermal plant equipment, electrical systems, instrumentation, or controls. (32m a shift)
• Perform pre- and post-installation pressure, flow, and related tests of vertical and horizontal geothermal loop piping. (19m a shift)

Much of it comes down to where and how the work happens. In-person, hands-on and high-stakes work is where AI and robots have made the least headway so far. In the official O*NET survey of people in this job:

• 91% carry high or very high responsibility for other workers' safety
• 88% work in very hot or cold conditions at least weekly
• 83% work outdoors in all weather every day

We track 1 sourced company move that affects this job. Most recent:

• Jun 22, 2026: Fervo, Nvidia and PNNL build AI twin for geothermal drilling (Announced)

On Indeed, job postings in the Installation & Maintenance sector are at 118% of their February 2020 level (all U.S. postings: 104%), up 4.1% from a year earlier, as of Oct 9, 2026. BLS separately expects about 18,000 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 $49,230 a year ($23.67 an hour), 3% below the median for all U.S. jobs ($50,980). Most people in this job earn between $36,080 and $77,040 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 2.6% from 2025 to 2035, compared with 3.5% growth for all jobs. That's about 211,000 jobs in 2035. It expects about 18,000 openings a year, mostly from people retiring or changing careers. These projections don't single out AI as a cause.

About 176,000 people in the U.S., roughly 0.11% of all workers (BLS, May 2025). That makes it the 188th largest of the 796 jobs on this site. BLS expects about 211,000 in 2035.

The most common requirement is a high school diploma: about 66% of people in the job said so in the official O*NET survey. O*NET rates the job at level 2 of 5 for preparation, which usually means: high school diploma, some training. 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: Installation, Troubleshooting, Operations Monitoring, Repairing
• Get strong at the parts of the job that stay with people (listed above), which take 7h 9m of a typical shift
• Tools employers list: Autodesk AutoCAD, Microsoft Excel, Microsoft Office software, Microsoft Outlook, Microsoft Word

These use similar skills, with less of a typical shift touched by AI or robots. 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:

• Wind Turbine Service Technicians (12m touched, $64k median pay)
• Millwrights (0m touched, $66k median pay)

Each task carries its own evidence label. For this job: 2 with robots in real deployments, 22 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.