Histology Technicians

Histology Technicians score 13 out of 100, which is low exposure to AI. That ranks #721 of 923 US occupations, where #1 is the most exposed. Of the 8 tasks in this job, AI could speed up 0 on its own and 2 more with extra software built on top of it. None of its tasks showed up in real AI use in April–May 2026.

13/ 100

Low

Rank: #721of 923 jobs
US workers: 332,940for Clinical Laboratory Technologists and Technicians
Median pay: $62,930a year
In real AI use: 0 of 8tasks, April–May 2026

Free report

Follow how AI is changing histology technicians work.

Subscribe to the weekly report and get The AI Job Exposure Report (PDF) right away: the most and least exposed jobs, exposure by field, and the AI-resilient jobs that pay well.

Free · one email a week · unsubscribe anytime

Task by task

Each task this job involves, as listed by O*NET, rated on whether a large language model like GPT-4 could cut the time it takes by at least half at the same quality. Tasks marked Seen in real AI use appeared in conversations with Claude in April–May 2026 (Anthropic Economic Index).

AI can speed this up on its own: 0 (0%)
AI can speed this up with extra software: 2 (25%)
Little or no AI speed-up: 6 (75%)

Archive diagnostic material, such as histologic slides and blocks.AI can speed this up with extra software
Stain tissue specimens with dyes or other chemicals to make cell details visible under microscopes.AI can speed this up with extra software
Cut sections of body tissues for microscopic examination, using microtomes.Little or no AI speed-up
Embed tissue specimens into paraffin wax blocks, or infiltrate tissue specimens with wax.Little or no AI speed-up
Freeze tissue specimens.Little or no AI speed-up
Maintain laboratory equipment, such as microscopes, mass spectrometers, microtomes, immunostainers, tissue processors, embedding centers, and water baths.Little or no AI speed-up
Mount tissue specimens on glass slides.Little or no AI speed-up
Operate computerized laboratory equipment to dehydrate, decalcify, or microincinerate tissue samples.Little or no AI speed-up

What you can do about it

Get a personal plan for what to learn next.

Skill Half Life turns this score into a 90-day plan for your situation: your realistic options, the skills that carry over, and training that fits your time and budget. Coming soon.

See your options

Similar jobs, lower exposure

Related occupations that score at least 10 points lower.

This job is already among the least exposed in its field.

Other jobs in this field

Healthcare Practitioners and Technical occupations close to this one.

All healthcare practitioners and technical jobs and AI

Questions about histology technicians and AI

Will AI replace histology technicians?

Unlikely. Most of the work is hard for today's AI to speed up. Histology Technicians score 13 out of 100 (low exposure), #721 of 923 US jobs. AI could speed up 2 of the job's 8 tasks, 0 of them on its own, while 6 see little or no speed-up. Exposure means the work is likely to change, not that the job will disappear.

Which histology technicians tasks can AI do?

The most exposed tasks include "Archive diagnostic material, such as histologic slides and blocks"; "Stain tissue specimens with dyes or other chemicals to make cell details visible under microscopes".

Which histology technicians tasks are hardest for AI?

Tasks with little or no AI speed-up include "Cut sections of body tissues for microscopic examination, using microtomes"; "Embed tissue specimens into paraffin wax blocks, or infiltrate tissue specimens with wax"; "Freeze tissue specimens".

Are people already using AI for this work?

Not much yet. None of the job's tasks showed up in real conversations with Claude in April–May 2026, according to the Anthropic Economic Index.

How many people work as histology technicians, and what do they earn?

About 332,940 people in the US (figure for Clinical Laboratory Technologists and Technicians), with median pay of $62,930 a year (BLS, May 2025).

How to read this score. Exposure measures how much of the work AI could speed up, not whether the job will disappear. A highly exposed job can change shape, with people spending less time on routine tasks and more on the rest. The score counts tasks AI can speed up on its own in full, and tasks that need extra software at half weight.

The ratings come from published research based on GPT-4 (2023). To show what's happening now, each task is also checked against the latest Anthropic Economic Index, which records which tasks people actually use AI for. That data is refreshed automatically when Anthropic publishes a new release. Read the full method.