# Will extension agents be replaced by AI? Updated October 2026 Extension agents score 46 out of 100 for AI exposure. AI helps with 44% of their task time, and they stay in charge. AI can do another 23%. 33% needs a person. - **23%** AI can do it - **44%** AI helps - **33%** Needs a person Moderate exposure Higher than 65% of the 923 jobs we scored. ## Task by task We graded 15 tasks, most exposed first. AI can do 3 of them, helps with 7 and leaves 5 to people. | Task | AI exposure | | --- | --- | | Research information requested by farmers. LLMs answer most research questions quickly; staff verify sources. | 72% AI can do it | | Maintain records of services provided and the effects of advice given. Record keeping is routine digital work AI can largely handle. | 72% AI can do it | | Prepare and distribute leaflets, pamphlets, and visual aids for educational and informational purposes. AI drafts and designs leaflet content; staff approve and distribute. | 65% AI can do it | | Conduct agricultural research, analyze data, and prepare research reports. AI speeds literature review and drafting; researchers lead analysis. | 60% AI helps | | Collect and evaluate data to determine community program needs. AI analyzes survey data; judging community needs stays with staff. | 50% AI helps | ## How extension agents compare All jobs (923) Educational instruction and library (62) The dark line is **extension agents, at 46**. Each dot is a score, and darker dots mean more jobs share it. The short marks are the averages, 37 for all jobs and 45 for educational instruction and library. ## Pay and outlook in the US Median pay $60,220 a year, May 2025 People employed 8,220 in the US, May 2025 Projected change in jobs \-3.2% from 2024 to 2034 ## Skills to build - Run field demonstrations of new techniques with growers in person - Collect soil and herbage samples during on-site farm visits - Diagnose production problems through live dialogue at farm visits - Verify AI-drafted research answers against university extension bulletins - Build program outcome dashboards in Microsoft Excel - Map county agriculture data with ESRI ArcGIS software ## Safer roles nearby 5 related jobs with lower scores. - [Agriculture professors45 out of 100](https://www.aigentcy.com/ai-exposure/agriculture-professors/) - [Range managers39 out of 100](https://www.aigentcy.com/ai-exposure/range-managers/) - [Soil scientists41 out of 100](https://www.aigentcy.com/ai-exposure/soil-scientists/) - [Middle school CTE teachers35 out of 100](https://www.aigentcy.com/ai-exposure/middle-school-cte-teachers/) - [High school CTE teachers35 out of 100](https://www.aigentcy.com/ai-exposure/high-school-cte-teachers/) ## Questions about extension agents and AI Will AI replace extension agents? Partly. About 4 in 10 working hours go to tasks AI can already do, mostly researching farmer questions and maintaining service records. Field demonstrations, farm visits, and advocacy stay with people because they depend on being present with growers and earning their trust. Which extension agent tasks is AI taking over? Researching information requested by farmers is the most exposed task, with an exposure score of 72, because LLMs answer most questions quickly and staff only verify sources. Maintaining records of services and advice effects also scores 72, since routine digital logs are largely automated. Leaflet and visual aid preparation scores 65. Which extension agent tasks stay human? Field demonstrations score 8, the lowest in the job, because they are physical work done in person with growers. Community fair and 4-H events score 12 because they depend on relationships. Diagnosing production problems scores 20 and needs farm visits and live dialogue with producers. How can extension agents stay valuable? Keep running on-site diagnosis and soil sampling during farm visits, since those tasks score lowest for exposure. Check every AI research answer against university bulletins before sharing it with farmers. Build outcome dashboards in Microsoft Excel from your program surveys, and map county needs in ArcGIS. Spend the hours AI frees on 4-H and fair events in person. ## Related jobs - [Management consultants55 out of 100](https://www.aigentcy.com/ai-exposure/management-consultants/) - [Vocational instructors47 out of 100](https://www.aigentcy.com/ai-exposure/vocational-instructors/) - [Business professors52 out of 100](https://www.aigentcy.com/ai-exposure/business-professors/) - [Health education specialists57 out of 100](https://www.aigentcy.com/ai-exposure/health-education-specialists/) ## Next steps for extension agents - ### Check your job Your job title is a rough guide. Your tasks decide your score. Paste your job description or CV to see which tasks AI can do. [Check your job](https://www.aigentcy.com/tools/ai-exposure-checker/) [Check your CV](https://www.aigentcy.com/tools/cv-checker/) - ### Estimate team savings The score is per person. Add headcount and salary to see the hours AI can take on in a team of extension agents, and what they cost. [Estimate what AI saves a team of extension agents](https://www.aigentcy.com/tools/team-ai-audit/?role=extension-agents) [Work out the return on automation](https://www.aigentcy.com/tools/ai-savings-calculator/) ### Check which roles in your team AI can take on We map your team's tasks, show what AI can do today and build the automations that pay back first. [Book an AI audit](https://www.aigentcy.com/audit/) ## Related topics - [**Jobs AI can't replace**Roustabouts score lowest, at 6.](https://www.aigentcy.com/ai-exposure/jobs-ai-cant-replace/) - [**Jobs most at risk from AI**Proofreaders score highest, at 76.](https://www.aigentcy.com/ai-exposure/jobs-most-exposed-to-ai/) - [**High-paying jobs with low AI exposure**Pediatric surgeons earn a median $559,030 and score 29.](https://www.aigentcy.com/ai-exposure/high-paying-jobs-low-ai-exposure/) - [**Entry-level jobs with low AI exposure**Roustabouts need little prior training and score 6.](https://www.aigentcy.com/ai-exposure/entry-level-jobs-low-ai-exposure/) - [**Jobs AI speeds up the most**AI helps with 98% of the task time for health informatics specialists.](https://www.aigentcy.com/ai-exposure/jobs-ai-speeds-up/) - [**AI and jobs in Malta**15 iGaming roles graded task by task.](https://www.aigentcy.com/ai-exposure/malta/) - [**Skills that keep work human**The skills to build in the jobs AI changes least.](https://www.aigentcy.com/ai-exposure/skills/) - [**Jobs A to Z**Every job we score, by first letter.](https://www.aigentcy.com/ai-exposure/jobs/) - [**AI exposure by industry**Average scores for 22 job groups.](https://www.aigentcy.com/ai-exposure/industries/) - [**Write a CV screening software can read**How applicant tracking systems read a CV, and what to change.](https://www.aigentcy.com/ai-exposure/cv-screening-guide/) - [**AI for businesses**The tasks to automate first in each team and industry.](https://www.aigentcy.com/ai-for/) - [**How we score AI exposure**The grading, the weights and every source.](https://www.aigentcy.com/ai-exposure/methodology/) Sources and licences Occupation data from the O\*NET 30.3 Database by the U.S. Department of Labor, Employment and Training Administration (USDOL/ETA), used under [CC BY 4.0](https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/) and modified by Aigentcy. O\*NET® is a trademark of USDOL/ETA. Wage, employment and projection data from the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics. EU occupation names from ESCO, European Commission. AI usage signals from the Anthropic Economic Index (CC BY) and Microsoft Research (CC BY 4.0). [Methodology and sources](https://www.aigentcy.com/ai-exposure/methodology/). Scores © Aigentcy. Quote them with a link to the page.