Mostly Resilient
Last Update: 6/19/2026
AI Resilience Score for Fishing & Hunting Workers:
52.6%
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.
High
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%).
Low
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%).
N/A
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.
Limited data sources are available, or existing sources show notable disagreement on the outlook for this occupation.
Contributing sources
AI Resilience Report forFishing and Hunting Workers
N/A median salary•2,800 annual openings•SOC Code: 45-3031.00
Fishing and Hunting Workers are somewhat more resilient to AI impacts than most occupations, according to our analysis of 4 sources.
Fishing and hunting work is labeled "Mostly Resilient" because the heart of the job, setting traps, navigating rough water, reading animal behavior, and making split-second calls in dangerous conditions, is physical, unpredictable, and deeply human in ways that AI simply cannot replicate yet. AI is stepping in as a helpful assistant for the more routine, desk-side tasks (like reviewing hours of monitoring footage or spotting species on deck), saving workers significant time without actually taking over their roles.
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Fishing and hunting work is labeled "Mostly Resilient" because the heart of the job, setting traps, navigating rough water, reading animal behavior, and making split-second calls in dangerous conditions, is physical, unpredictable, and deeply human in ways that AI simply cannot replicate yet. AI is stepping in as a helpful assistant for the more routine, desk-side tasks (like reviewing hours of monitoring footage or spotting species on deck), saving workers significant time without actually taking over their roles.
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View analysisChat with CoachLatest newsMore career infoAnalysisChatNewsMoreAnalysis of Current AI Resilience
Fishing & Hunting Workers
Updated Quarterly
How is AI changing Fishing & Hunting Workers jobs?
Right now, AI in fishing and hunting is mostly augmenting (helping) workers, not replacing them. The biggest impact is on the paperwork-style parts of the job — like counting fish and reviewing video — while the hands-on outdoor work still belongs to humans. NOAA's Technology Partnerships Office reports that an AI tool called Catchvision reviews electronic monitoring video and "saves up to 80% of the time spent reviewing EM footage" [1], but it "does not replace human oversight." Trade publication National Fisherman describes a Canadian startup, OnDeck AI, working with halibut and blackcod longliners on Vision Language Models that "learn to reason, almost like a human" [2] to identify species on deck — though the founder estimates real deployment is three to five years away.
In Alaska, the Alaska Longline Fishermen's Association is using a $485,000 grant to train Archipelago's FishVue AI [3] for sablefish and halibut fleets. For hunters and trappers, Stealth Cam's 2026 trail cameras add AI-powered "false image detection" and a "Rack Alert" feature [4] that recognizes when a buck enters the frame. Anglers are getting AI help too: MPR News reports that forward-facing sonar lets anglers "spot fish, track their movement and even watch how they react to a lure" [5].
Sources
How fast is AI adoption growing for Fishing & Hunting Workers?
Adoption is moving quickly off the boat (in monitoring offices and trail-cam apps) but slowly on the boat or in the field. Cost pressure is a big driver — rising fuel and labor prices push fleets toward AI that can shrink expensive observer programs. But many tasks — setting traps, stunning quarry, traveling by snowmobile or boat in rough weather — are physical, unpredictable, and hard to automate.
Ethics and law also slow things down: the Oregon Department of Fish and Wildlife explains that thermal imaging devices and drones are illegal for hunting because they violate "fair chase—a foundational principle in North American hunting ethics" [6]. The takeaway for young people considering this career: AI is becoming a useful sidekick for paperwork, scouting, and counting, but the human skills that matter most here — judgment in dangerous weather, hands-on craft, knowing animal behavior, and respecting conservation ethics — are still firmly in human hands.
Sources
Will AI replace Fishing & Hunting Workers?
No. We don't think AI will replace Fishing and Hunting Workers, though we do expect the job to change.
That view is backed by our 52.6% AI Resilience Score. Right now, AI is mostly handling the paperwork side of things. Tools like Catchvision save up to 80% of the time spent reviewing electronic monitoring footage, but they do not replace human oversight [1]. Forward-facing sonar lets anglers track fish movement and watch how they react to a lure [5], and trail cameras now flag bucks automatically [4]. These are useful upgrades, not replacements.
The core of this work stays human for a few reasons. Setting traps, working in rough weather, reading animal behavior, and making judgment calls in the field are physical and unpredictable in ways AI cannot easily handle. Ethics and law slow automation further: thermal imaging and drones are banned for hunting in some states because they violate fair chase principles [6].
The honest caveat is that long-term employer demand for this field is weak, so job security is a real concern regardless of AI. The path forward is learning to work alongside these tools while building the hands-on, outdoor skills that no algorithm can replicate.
Sources
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Latest AI news for Fishing & Hunting Workers
These articles highlight how AI is transforming careers in fishing and hunting. For instance, the "AI & Fishing/Hunting Workers: Impact Timeline & Risk" article predicts that by 2037, 20% of tasks in this field could be automated, prompting workers to adapt and focus on more specialized skills. Similarly, the "SBIR Success Story" showcases how AI innovations are already improving efficiency and reducing costs in commercial fishing. Embracing AI can empower future workers to enhance their roles and stay resilient in a changing job landscape.
AI & Fishing/Hunting Workers: Impact Timeline & Risk
myjobvsai.com • 6/20/2026
By 2037, a significant 20% of tasks performed by Fishing and Hunting Workers are projected to be impacted by advanced AI and automation. Read more
Will AI Replace Fishing and Hunting Workers?
willrobotstakemyjob.com • 6/20/2026
Explore the automation risk for Fishing and Hunting Workers. See how AI could affect this career, including pay, outlook, and safer alternatives.
SBIR Success Story: AI innovation helps commercial ...
techpartnerships.noaa.gov • 6/20/2026
Jan 8, 2026 — SBIR Success Story: AI innovation helps commercial fishing save time, money, and manpower - Technology Partnerships Office.
Primer Harnessing AI to map global fishing vessel activity
www.sciencedirect.com • 6/20/2026
by H Welch · 2024 · Cited by 21 — Artificial intelligence (AI) has emerged as a critical tool for mapping fishing fleets, improving the quality, volume, and immediacy of data on ... Read more
Fish and microchips: how AI can help Europe's fishers and ...
www.youtube.com • 6/20/2026
An EU-backed project aims to deploy catch scanners using AI on fishing boats to identify fish species, size, and weight.
More Career Info
Career: Fishing and Hunting Workers
They catch fish and hunt animals to provide food or materials, using gear like nets, traps, and guns, often working outdoors in various weather conditions.
Parent Careers
Employment & Wage Data
Jobs (2024)
21,900
Growth (2024-34)
-4.6%
Annual Openings
2,800
Education
No formal educational credential
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
Kill or stun trapped quarry, using clubs, poisons, guns, or drowning methods.
2
Select, bait, and set traps, and lay poison along trails, according to species, size, habits, and environs of birds or animals and reasons for trapping them.
3
Travel on foot, by vehicle, or by equipment such as boats, snowmobiles, helicopters, snowshoes, or skis to reach hunting areas.
4
Release quarry from traps or nets and transfer to cages.
5
Scrape fat, blubber, or flesh from skin sides of pelts with knives or hand scrapers.
6
Train dogs for hunting.
7
Maintain engines, fishing gear, and other on-board equipment and perform minor repairs.
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.
