# Will AI replace firefighters? Updated October 2026 Firefighters score 15 of 100 for AI exposure. 77% of their task time still needs a person. AI can do 3% today and speed up another 20%. - **3%** AI can do it - **20%** AI helps - **77%** Needs a person Low exposure Lower than 89% of the 923 occupations we scored. ## Task by task We graded 30 tasks, listed here from most to least exposed. AI can do 1 of them today, speeds up 6 and leaves 23 to people. | Task | AI exposure | | --- | --- | | Prepare written reports that detail specifics of fire incidents. Incident report drafting from notes is strong LLM work. | 70% AI can do it | | Inform and educate the public on fire prevention. AI can draft materials; delivering talks is in person. | 40% AI helps | | Train new employees to control and suppress fires. Hands on skills teaching is human; AI builds lesson plans. | 30% AI helps | | Inspect buildings for fire hazards and compliance with fire prevention ordinances, testing and checking smoke alarms and fire suppression equipment as necessary. Physical testing on site; AI helps with code and paperwork. | 30% AI helps | | Assess fires and situations and report conditions to superiors to receive instructions, using two-way radios. Live radio reports are human; AI only helps log. | 22% AI helps | ## How firefighters compare All occupations (923) Protective service (26) **Firefighters score 15**, marked by the dark line. Each dot is a score, darker where more occupations share it. The short marks show the averages, 37 for all occupations and 31 for protective service. ## Pay and outlook in the US Median pay $59,280 a year, May 2025 People employed 345,990 in the US, May 2025 Projected change in jobs +3.7% from 2024 to 2034 ## Skills to build - Hold NFPA 1001 Firefighter I and II certification - Hold EMT certification for emergency medical care - Write and check incident reports in Microsoft Word - Run smoke alarm and suppression system tests on site - Deliver fire prevention talks to schools and residents - Log dispatch radio traffic and supply requests in Excel ## Safer roles nearby 5 related occupations with lower scores. - [Forestry workers11 out of 100](https://www.aigentcy.com/ai-exposure/forestry-workers/) - [Ambulance drivers13 out of 100](https://www.aigentcy.com/ai-exposure/ambulance-drivers/) - [Hazardous materials removal workers14 out of 100](https://www.aigentcy.com/ai-exposure/hazardous-materials-removal-workers/) - [Sailors13 out of 100](https://www.aigentcy.com/ai-exposure/sailors/) - [Electrical linemen12 out of 100](https://www.aigentcy.com/ai-exposure/electrical-linemen/) ## Questions about firefighters and AI Will firefighters be replaced by AI? Partly. About 1 in 10 working hours go to tasks AI can already do, mostly drafting incident reports and public fire prevention materials. Fire scenes, ladder work and patient care stay with crews because they need a person on site. Which firefighter tasks is AI taking over? Incident report writing is the most exposed task, with an exposure score of 70, because AI can turn crew notes into structured reports in Microsoft Word. Drafting fire prevention handouts scores 40 and training lesson plans score 30, since AI can produce the first draft in Microsoft PowerPoint or Word. Which firefighter tasks stay human? Extinguishing flames with pumps, climbing ladders and giving first aid or CPR each score 3 for exposure. These tasks need a person on site moving equipment, climbing structures and treating patients. About 77% of this job's task weight stays human. How can firefighters stay valuable as AI spreads? Keep the parts of the job that happen on site. Hold EMT and fire inspector credentials, run smoke alarm and suppression tests, and deliver fire prevention talks. Use AI for the first draft of incident reports in Microsoft Word, then check every fact before filing. ## Related jobs - [Fire supervisors29 out of 100](https://www.aigentcy.com/ai-exposure/fire-supervisors/) - [Lifeguards19 out of 100](https://www.aigentcy.com/ai-exposure/lifeguards/) - [Emergency medical technicians17 out of 100](https://www.aigentcy.com/ai-exposure/emergency-medical-technicians/) - [Paramedics19 out of 100](https://www.aigentcy.com/ai-exposure/paramedics/) ## Next steps for firefighters - ### Check your job Your job title is a rough guide. Your actual tasks decide your score. Paste your job description or CV and see which of your 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/) ### 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**Cement masons score lowest, at 8.](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**Radiologists earn a median $420,860 and score 46.](https://www.aigentcy.com/ai-exposure/high-paying-jobs-low-ai-exposure/) - [**Entry-level jobs with low AI exposure**Cement masons need little prior training and score 8.](https://www.aigentcy.com/ai-exposure/entry-level-jobs-low-ai-exposure/) - [**Jobs AI speeds up the most**For natural sciences managers, AI speeds up 96% of task time.](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 publish, by first letter.](https://www.aigentcy.com/ai-exposure/jobs/) - [**AI exposure by industry**Average scores for 22 occupation 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/) 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.