Will cooks be replaced by AI?
Updated
Cooks score 23 of 100 for AI exposure. 89% of their task time still needs a person. AI can do 3% today and speed up another 8%.
- 3% AI can do it
- 8% AI helps
- 89% Needs a person
Low exposure
Lower than 75% of the 923 occupations we scored.
Task by task
We graded 20 tasks, listed here from most to least exposed. AI can do 1 of them today, speeds up 3 and leaves 16 to people.
| Task | AI exposure |
|---|---|
| Keep records and accounts. Bookkeeping and record keeping is routine software work. | 70% AI can do it |
| Plan and price menu items. Costing software and AI can price menu items for review. | 55% AI helps |
| Estimate expected food consumption, requisition or purchase supplies, or procure food from storage. Forecasting usage and ordering supplies can be software assisted. | 50% AI helps |
| Consult with supervisory staff to plan menus, taking into consideration factors such as costs and special event needs. AI can draft menu options and cost tradeoffs for staff review. | 40% AI helps |
| Ensure freshness of food and ingredients by checking for quality, keeping track of old and new items, and rotating stock. Checking freshness and rotating stock is mostly physical inspection. | 22% Needs a person |
| Coordinate and supervise work of kitchen staff. Supervising staff is live people management needing presence. | 15% Needs a person |
| Bake breads, rolls, cakes, and pastries. Recipes can be drafted with AI but baking is physical. | 15% Needs a person |
| Season and cook food according to recipes or personal judgment and experience. Seasoning and cooking at the stove is hands-on skilled work. | 12% Needs a person |
| Portion, arrange, and garnish food, and serve food to waiters or patrons. Plating and garnishing food is physical and visual work. | 10% Needs a person |
| Weigh, measure, and mix ingredients according to recipes or personal judgment, using various kitchen utensils and equipment. Measuring and mixing ingredients is physical, though recipes can be scaled. | 10% Needs a person |
Show the other 10 tasks
| Task | AI exposure |
|---|---|
| Prepare relishes and hors d'oeuvres. Preparing relishes and hors d'oeuvres is physical kitchen work. | 10% Needs a person |
| Ensure food is stored and cooked at correct temperature by regulating temperature of ovens, broilers, grills, and roasters. Adjusting oven and grill temperature is physical equipment work. | 8% Needs a person |
| Bake, roast, broil, and steam meats, fish, vegetables, and other foods. Roasting, broiling and steaming need physical cooking equipment. | 8% Needs a person |
| Wash, peel, cut, and seed fruits and vegetables to prepare them for consumption. Knife work on produce is physical, not something AI can do. | 8% Needs a person |
| Inspect and clean food preparation areas, such as equipment, work surfaces, and serving areas, to ensure safe and sanitary food-handling practices. Physical cleaning of equipment and surfaces needs a person. | 5% Needs a person |
| Observe and test foods to determine if they have been cooked sufficiently, using methods such as tasting, smelling, or piercing them with utensils. Tasting and piercing food relies on physical senses. | 5% Needs a person |
| Substitute for or assist other cooks during emergencies or rush periods. Covering for other cooks during rushes is physical and live. | 5% Needs a person |
| Turn or stir foods to ensure even cooking. Turning and stirring food is a physical kitchen action. | 3% Needs a person |
| Carve and trim meats such as beef, veal, ham, pork, and lamb for hot or cold service, or for sandwiches. Carving and trimming meat requires physical knife skill. | 3% Needs a person |
| Butcher and dress animals, fowl, or shellfish, or cut and bone meat prior to cooking. Butchering and boning meat is physical knife and bone work. | 3% Needs a person |
How cooks compare
All occupations (923)
Food preparation and serving (16)
Pay and outlook in the US
- Median pay
- $37,390 a year, May 2025
- People employed
- 1.4 million in the US, May 2025
- Projected change in jobs
- +12.1% from 2024 to 2034
Skills to build
- Run food cost analysis in Recipe cost control software
- Build and price menu items in Menu planning software
- Log stock rotation in Food safety labeling systems
- Enter daily sales and specials in Point of sale POS restaurant software
- Carve, trim, and bone meat to portion specs
- Hold a food handler certificate for kitchen inspections
Safer roles nearby
5 related occupations with lower scores.
Questions about cooks and AI
Will AI replace cooks?
Partly. About 1 in 10 working hours for cooks go to tasks AI can already do, mostly record keeping and menu pricing. Cooking itself stays with people, since tasting, carving, and running a hot line need hands and senses in the kitchen.
Which cook tasks is AI taking over?
Keeping records and accounts scores 70 on exposure, the highest in this job, because bookkeeping software handles routine entries and cost records. Planning and pricing menu items scores 55, since costing software can price dishes for chef review. Estimating food usage and ordering supplies scores 50, because forecasting tools can draft purchase lists from sales data.
Which cook tasks stay human?
Turning and stirring food, carving meat, and butchering all score 3 on exposure, the lowest in this job, because they need physical knife skill and hands at the stove. Tasting and piercing food to judge doneness scores 5, since it relies on the cook's senses. Covering for other cooks in rush periods also scores 5 because it is live and physical.
How can cooks stay valuable?
Learn Recipe cost control software and Menu planning software, since costing is where AI already works. Check food cost on every dish before any menu change. Keep Food safety labeling systems current so stock rotation and allergen labels pass inspection. Lead the hands-on knife, sauté, and rush-period work that stays with people.
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