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AI exposure Sales

Will AI replace sales engineers?

Sales Engineers. US occupation 41-9031.

32.2%

of the time sales engineers spend on their work goes on tasks where AI is already being used to do that work.of sales engineers' working hours go on tasks AI has already started taking off their plate.

Ranked 54 of 756 US occupations. More exposed than 92% of them.Further along than 92% of them.

Average US job 7.7%

One of the most exposed jobs in the country.Front of the queue for an AI assistant.

What AI already does for sales engineersWhat sales engineers no longer do alone

O*NET lists 25 tasks for sales engineers. AI use at work shows up in 6 of them. Each score runs from 0.5, where every observed use helps a person with the task, to 1, where every use does the task outright.

  1. Document account activities, generate reports, and keep records of business transactions with customers and suppliers.Core task mostly automated 0.97
  2. Collaborate with sales teams to understand customer requirements, to promote the sale of company products, and to provide sales support.Core task mostly automated 0.97
  3. Research and identify potential customers for products or services.Core task mostly automated 0.97
  4. Provide technical and non-technical support and services to clients or other staff members regarding the use, operation, and maintenance of equipment. mostly automated 0.95
  5. Develop, present, or respond to proposals for specific customer requirements, including request for proposal responses and industry-specific solutions.Core task mostly automated 0.88
  6. Confer with customers and engineers to assess equipment needs and to determine system requirements.Core task automated and assisted 0.72

What it does not touch, yetWhat still needs a human

19 of the 25 tasks show no AI use at work in the data.

  • Arrange for demonstrations or trial installations of equipment.Core task
  • Attend company training seminars to become familiar with product lines.Core task
  • Attend trade shows and seminars to promote products or to learn about industry developments.Core task
  • Create sales or service contracts for products or services.Core task
  • Develop sales plans to introduce products in new markets.Core task
  • Identify resale opportunities and support them to achieve sales plans.Core task
Show the other 13
  • Keep informed on industry news and trends, products, services, competitors, relevant information about legacy, existing, and emerging technologies, and the latest product-line developments.Core task
  • Maintain sales forecasting reports.Core task
  • Plan and modify product configurations to meet customer needs.Core task
  • Prepare and deliver technical presentations that explain products or services to customers and prospective customers.Core task
  • Recommend improved materials or machinery to customers, documenting how such changes will lower costs or increase production.Core task
  • Secure and renew orders and arrange delivery.Core task
  • Train team members in the customer applications of technologies.Core task
  • Visit prospective buyers at commercial, industrial, or other establishments to show samples or catalogs, and to inform them about product pricing, availability, and advantages.Core task
  • Diagnose problems with installed equipment.
  • Provide information needed for the development of custom-made machinery.
  • Report to supervisors about prospective firms' credit ratings.
  • Sell products requiring extensive technical expertise and support for installation and use, such as material handling equipment, numerical-control machinery, or computer systems.
  • Write technical documentation for products.

How that compares

Among the 20 sales occupations, sales engineers rank 5. The group averages 23.6%, and its most exposed job is Sales Representatives, Wholesale and Manufacturing, Except Technical and Scientific Products at 62.8%. The average US occupation sits at 7.7%.

All 756 occupations, ranked

Just above in the ranking

  1. 53Database Administrators 33.2%
  2. 54Psychology Teachers, Postsecondary 32.2%
  3. 54Retail Salespersons 32.2%

Just below

  1. 57Marketing Managers 32.0%
  2. 58Insurance Sales Agents 31.9%
  3. 59Chemical Technicians 31.5%

What this does and does not mean

Exposure is observed use, not a forecast. Anthropic maps work conversations with Claude onto the tasks O*NET lists for each job and asks, of the tasks AI could speed up, which are actually being used for at work. A use that does the task outright counts in full and a use that assists a person counts half. The task scores are averaged into the occupation figure by the share of time spent on each task.

A high figure means AI is already part of how this work gets done. It does not mean anyone has been replaced. Anthropic's own reading of the labour market finds no systematic rise in unemployment among exposed workers so far, and about 14% fewer 22 to 25 year olds starting exposed jobs.No measurable rise in unemployment among exposed workers so far, and about 14% fewer 22 to 25 year olds starting these jobs. Gap years for everyone. Labor market impacts, 5 March 2026.

Task list and titles from O*NET 31.0 by the US Department of Labor, Employment and Training Administration, used under the CC BY 4.0 licence. Scores from the Anthropic Economic Index (CC BY). Checked 1 November 2026. How the ranking works.