Mostly Resilient
Last Update: 7/31/2026
AI Resilience Score for Comp & Info Research Sci:
57.2%
Median Score
Meaningful human contribution
Measures the parts of the occupation that still require a human touch. This score averages data from up to four AI exposure datasets, focusing on the role’s resilience against automation.
Med
Long-term employer demand
Predicts the health of the job market for this role through 2034. Using Bureau of Labor Statistics data, it balances projected annual job openings (60%) with overall employment growth (40%).
Med
Sustained economic opportunity
Measures future earning potential and career flexibility. This score is a blend of total projected labor income (67%) and the role’s inherent ability to adapt to economic and technological shifts (33%).
High
This reflects the reliability of your score based on the number of data sources available for this career and how closely those sources agree on the outlook. A higher confidence means more consistent evidence from labor experts and AI models.
There are a reasonable number of sources for this result, but there is some disagreement between them.
Contributing sources
AI Resilience Report forComputer and Information Research Scientists
$140,300 median salary•3,200 annual openings•SOC Code: 15-1221.00
Computer and Information Research Scientists are somewhat more resilient to AI impacts than most occupations, according to our analysis of 8 sources.
Computer and information research scientists are labeled "Mostly Resilient" because, while AI is rapidly taking over routine coding and data tasks, the most important parts of this job still require deeply human skills like judgment, creativity, and ethical decision-making. AI tools are actually making these researchers more productive rather than replacing them, helping them spot patterns and generate ideas faster, but humans are still needed to evaluate proposals, mentor teams, and decide which problems are worth solving in the first place.
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Computer and information research scientists are labeled "Mostly Resilient" because, while AI is rapidly taking over routine coding and data tasks, the most important parts of this job still require deeply human skills like judgment, creativity, and ethical decision-making. AI tools are actually making these researchers more productive rather than replacing them, helping them spot patterns and generate ideas faster, but humans are still needed to evaluate proposals, mentor teams, and decide which problems are worth solving in the first place.
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Comp & Info Research Sci
Updated Quarterly
How is AI changing Comp & Info Research Sci jobs?
Right now, AI is mostly augmenting computer and information research scientists rather than fully replacing them — but the line is shifting fast. OpenAI's chief scientist told MIT Technology Review [1] that the company is building an "AI researcher," with an "autonomous AI research intern" planned for September 2026 and a fully automated multi-agent research system targeted for 2028. Academic progress is real too: Nature recently published "The AI Scientist," [2] a system that generates ideas, writes code, runs experiments, and even drafts manuscripts — one of which passed first-round peer review at a top machine-learning workshop.
At national labs, Oak Ridge is building "autonomous science" pipelines [3] that let AI agents direct experiments end to end. Stanford's 2026 AI Index reports [4] that AI publications in the sciences jumped 26–28% year over year and that agent success on real-world tasks rose from 20% to 77%. Still, judgment-heavy core tasks — evaluating proposals, negotiating with vendors, mentoring staff — remain firmly human.
As one Stanford computer scientist put it for HAI [4], AI is great at spotting gaps, but judgment calls still need people.
Sources
How fast is AI adoption growing for Comp & Info Research Sci?
Adoption in this field is unusually fast because research scientists build the tools, so they're the first to try them. The Computing Research Association [5] is even funding early-career fellowships in trustworthy AI to keep humans guiding the work. Costs are low — many AI coding and research agents are already commercial — and the productivity payoff is huge.
But there's a catch for newcomers: IEEE Spectrum reports [6] that U.S. programmer employment fell 27.5% between 2023 and 2025, while design-heavy software developer roles barely budged. Fortune notes [7] that employment for developers aged 22–25 dropped nearly 20% from late 2022, though BCG argues [8] that "AI helps engineers do their jobs more effectively rather than replacing them," and starting salaries for CS majors are still up about 7%. The hopeful takeaway: skills that combine technical depth with creativity, ethics, teamwork, and big-picture problem-solving are exactly what's growing in demand — and those are skills you can absolutely build.
Sources
Will AI replace Comp & Info Research Sci?
No. We don't think AI will replace Computer and Information Research Scientists, though we do expect the job to change.
Our AI Resilience Score for this career is 57.2%, which puts it in "Mostly Resilient" territory. That feels right to us. AI is genuinely reshaping the work: systems can now generate research ideas, run experiments, and draft manuscripts, with one AI-authored paper passing first-round peer review at a major machine-learning workshop [2]. OpenAI has even announced plans for a fully automated multi-agent research system by 2028 [1]. This is not hype. The tools are real and adoption is fast because research scientists build these tools themselves.
But the core of the job holds up. Evaluating which problems are worth solving, mentoring the next generation of researchers, and making ethical judgment calls still need people. As one Stanford computer scientist put it, AI is great at spotting gaps, but judgment calls still need humans [4]. BCG echoes this, arguing that AI helps engineers do their jobs more effectively rather than replacing them [8].
The honest advice for anyone entering this field: lean hard into the skills AI cannot replicate, creativity, ethics, collaboration, and big-picture thinking. Those are exactly what employers will keep paying for.
Sources
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Latest AI news for Comp & Info Research Sci
These articles provide valuable insights for aspiring Computer and Information Research Scientists. The guide on AI research scientists emphasizes the crucial role of analyzing information to drive AI advancements, which is fundamental to this career. Additionally, the piece on generative AI roles highlights emerging opportunities and skills needed in the evolving landscape, underscoring the importance of adaptability. Understanding these trends helps students build resilience in a field characterized by rapid changes and innovation, positioning them for success in AI-driven environments.
What Is an AI Research Scientist? 2026 Career Guide
www.coursera.org • 7/13/2026
As an AI research scientist, you'll shape AI advancements by researching and analyzing information that can help progress AI developments.
7 Generative AI Roles and How to Get Started
www.coursera.org • 6/29/2026
Discover the most sought-after roles in generative AI and learn what it takes to start a career in this field.
Top College Degrees That Can Lead to the Highest-Paying AI Jobs in 2026
www.investopedia.com • 6/20/2026
If you want to land a high-paying job in artificial intelligence, aim to grow your math and computer science skills—they matter more than...
AI assistants can sway writers’ attitudes, even when they’re watching for bias
news.cornell.edu • 3/11/2026
Cornell Tech researchers found that writers who used biased AI auto-suggestions saw their views gravitate toward the AI's positions without...
Kennesaw State University to launch Bachelor of Science in Artificial Intelligence in Fall 2026
www.kennesaw.edu • 2/10/2026
Kennesaw State University (KSU) continues to be a state leader in the rapidly growing field of artificial intelligence, with the addition of...
More Career Info
Career: Computer and Information Research Scientists
They solve complex computer problems by developing new technology and improving how computers work, helping make our digital world faster and smarter.
Parent Careers
Employment & Wage Data
Median Wage
$140,300
Jobs (2024)
40,300
Growth (2024-34)
+19.7%
Annual Openings
3,200
Education
Master's degree
Experience
None
Source: Bureau of Labor Statistics, Employment Projections 2024-2034
Task-Level AI Resilience Scores
AI-generated estimates of task resilience over the next 3 years
1
Participate in staffing decisions and direct training of subordinates.
2
Meet with managers, vendors, and others to solicit cooperation and resolve problems.
3
Participate in multidisciplinary projects in areas such as virtual reality, human-computer interaction, or robotics.
4
Analyze problems to develop solutions involving computer hardware and software.
5
Evaluate project plans and proposals to assess feasibility issues.
6
Maintain network hardware and software, direct network security measures, and monitor networks to ensure availability to system users.
Tasks are ranked by their AI resilience, with the most resilient tasks shown first. Core tasks are essential functions of this occupation, while supplemental tasks provide additional context.
