Somewhat Resilient
Last Update: 11/4/2026
AI Resilience Score for Materials Scientists:
46.8%
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%).
Med
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.
AI Resilience Report forMaterials Scientists
$117,790 median salary•600 annual openings•SOC Code: 19-2032.00
Materials Scientists are somewhat less resilient to AI impacts than most occupations, according to our analysis of 8 sources.
Materials science is labeled "Somewhat Resilient" because AI is genuinely changing how a big chunk of the work gets done, especially the research and analysis side, where tools can now run simulations, scan thousands of papers, and even suggest new ideas in days instead of months. That means the job is shifting: scientists who once spent most of their time on repetitive data crunching will need to focus more on guiding AI tools, asking the right questions, and making creative judgment calls that software cannot make on its own.
Learn more about how you can thrive in this position
This role is somewhat resilient
Materials science is labeled "Somewhat Resilient" because AI is genuinely changing how a big chunk of the work gets done, especially the research and analysis side, where tools can now run simulations, scan thousands of papers, and even suggest new ideas in days instead of months. That means the job is shifting: scientists who once spent most of their time on repetitive data crunching will need to focus more on guiding AI tools, asking the right questions, and making creative judgment calls that software cannot make on its own.
Read full analysisAnalysis of current AI resilience
Materials Scientists
Updated quarterly
How can Materials Scientists prepare for AI?
Latest AI news for Materials Scientists
These articles highlight the transformative role of AI in materials science, emphasizing the growing demand for skilled professionals in this field. For instance, the Materials Project is creating vast AI-ready datasets, which can enhance research efficiency and innovation. Additionally, the $18.1 million NSF award to CUNY and CCNY illustrates significant investment in AI-powered materials labs, paving the way for exciting career opportunities. As AI continues to shape the industry, materials scientists equipped with AI knowledge will be well-positioned to lead groundbreaking discoveries and advancements.
CUNY and CCNY win $18.1 million NSF award to build AI-powered materials lab | The City College of New York
www.ccny.cuny.edu • 7/23/2026
CUNY ASRC (right) and CCNY CDI (left) researchers have received an $18.1 million National Science Foundation (NSF) award to speed the...
Imperial expert leads science at £2 billion AI materials company CuspAI
www.imperial.ac.uk • 7/21/2026
A UK-based AI materials company co-led by an Imperial materials scientist has raised £330 million at a £2 billion valuation to accelerate...
CuspAI Launches ‘AI Materials Foundry’ a Global Network to Accelerate Breakthrough Discoveries
www.businesswire.com • 7/20/2026
The AI Materials Foundry brings together a global network of data, labs, compute and scientific expertise, orchestrated by a single agentic...
Accelerating Discovery: How the Materials Project Is Helping to Usher in the AI Revolution for Materials Science
newscenter.lbl.gov • 1/13/2026
The open-access materials database managed by Berkeley Lab has surpassed 650,000 registered users, enabling AI-ready scientific datasets at...
Leading the future of materials science education in the AI era
engineering.wisc.edu • 1/7/2026
Artificial intelligence opens enormous opportunities to transform materials science and materials-driven technologies, and the Department of...
More Career Info
Career: Materials Scientists
They study different materials to understand how they work and create new ones for products like phones, cars, and sports gear.
Parent Careers
Similar Careers
Alternate Titles
Materials Research Engineer · Materials Scientist · Research Scientist · Scientist · Applications Scientist · Metallurgical Engineer · Micro Electrical/Mechanical Systems Device Scientist (MEMS Device Scientist) · Polymer Materials Consultant · R and D Scientist (Research and Development Scientist)
Employment & Wage Data
Median Wage
$117,790
Jobs (2025)
8,600
Growth (2025-35)
+8.3%
Annual Openings
600
Education
Bachelor's degree
Experience
None
Source: Bureau of Labor Statistics, Employment Projections 2025-2035
Task-Level AI Resilience Scores
AI-generated estimates of task resilience over the next 3 years
1
Teach in colleges and universities.
2
Visit suppliers of materials or users of products to gather specific information.
3
Plan laboratory experiments to confirm feasibility of processes and techniques used in the production of materials with special characteristics.
4
Supervise and monitor production processes to ensure efficient use of equipment, timely changes to specifications, and project completion within time frame and budget.
5
Confer with customers to determine how to tailor materials to their needs.
6
Research methods of processing, forming, and firing materials to develop such products as ceramic dental fillings, unbreakable dinner plates, and telescope lenses.
7
Conduct research on the structures and properties of materials, such as metals, alloys, polymers, and ceramics, to obtain information that could be used to develop new products or enhance existing one...
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.
