Creators of ChatGPT reveal 44 jobs at highest risk of being taken over by AI in future

While there's no denying the impressive evolution of artificial intelligence over the past few years, that hasn't stopped alarm bells from ringing for many. It's been hard not to notice the boom in AI services like ChatGPT and Grok, with shares in these companies skyrocketing.

Still, the emergence of artificial intelligence as a futuristic industry hasn't come without its problems. As well as worries about humans falling for AI as they lose human connections, an increasing number of deaths have been linked to AI. There are also fears that it could wipe out the human race, and the more imminent threat is that AI could take our jobs.

We've already had the 'Godfather' of AI give his own thoughts on which jobs could be at risk, with Geoffrey Hinton suggesting that physical trades are the most secure, meaning plumbers could be the only job that's safe.

Those in the retail industry could be most at risk (Getty / Jeff Greenberg / Contributor)

In July 2025, Microsoft released its own list of 40 jobs most at risk, highlighting the likes of customer service representatives, PR specialists, and web developers. Journalists and editors are also at risk, so it might not be long until articles like this are being spewed out by AI instead of human hands. This is already happening with some outlets.

Even actors and models are on the chopping block, with recent uproar from Hollywood stars over the first AI actor.

Now, OpenAI has fanned the flames of controversy, as the ChatGPT overlord reveals the 44 jobs it thinks are most at risk.

In a blog post titled "Measuring the performance of our models on real-world tasks," OpenAI confirmed a whole host of industries are unsurprisingly likely to be affected by AI's growth.

The GDPval assessment put the most advanced AI models against humanoid workers in nine of the USA's most profitable industries, looking at "economically valuable, real-world tasks across 44 occupations."

It's clear AI is getting better at doing our jobs (OpenAI)

Named GDPval because it analyzed the Gross Domestic Product "as a key economic indicator," the research looked at how AI could soon affect the country's GDP.

Worringly, OpenAI claimed that current models are "approaching the quality of work produced by industry experts."

ChatGPT wasn't quite top of the game, as the report said Anthropic's Claude Opus 4.1 system was "rated as good as or better than humans in just under half the tasks."

The retail industry could be in particular trouble, especially as Claude Opus was outperforming counter and rental clerks in 81% of tasks, while sales managers were bested in 79%, and shipping, receiving, and inventory clerks lost out on 76%.

There's slightly better news for registered nurses, who were only outperformed by AI on 37% of the given tasks.

Journalists could also be safer for slightly longer, as the information sector of writers, film directors, and producers was only beaten in 39% of tasks.

Which jobs are most at risk of being replaced by AI?

1. Counter and rental clerks: 81%
2. Sales managers: 79%
3. Shipping, receiving, and inventory clerks: 76%
4. Editors: 75%
5. Software developers: 70%
6. Private detectives and investigators: 70%
7. Compliance officers: 69%
8. First-line supervisors of non-retail sales workers: 69%
9. Sales representatives, wholesale and manufacturing, except technical and scientific products: 68%
10. General operations managers: 67%
11. Medical and health services managers: 65%
12. Buyers and purchasing agents: 64%
13. Personal financial advisers: 64%
14. Administrative services managers: 62%
15. Customer service representatives: 59%
16. First-line supervisors of retail sales workers: 59%
17. First-line supervisors of production and operating workers: 58%
18. Nurse practitioners: 56%
19. Real estate brokers: 54%
20. News analysts, reporters, and journalists: 53%
21. Computer and information systems managers: 52%
22. First-line supervisors of police and detectives: 49%
23. Sales representatives, wholesale and manufacturing, technical and scientific products: 47%
24. Lawyers: 46%
25. Project management specialists: 42%
26. Child, family, and school social workers: 42%
27. Medical secretaries and administrative assistants: 42%
28. Securities, commodities, and financial services sales agents: 42%
29. First-line supervisors of office and administrative support workers: 41%
30. Financial investment analysts: 41%
31. Recreation workers: 37%
32. Registered nurses: 37%
33. Property, real estate, and community association managers: 34%
34. Financial managers: 32%
35. Producers and directors: 31%
36. Audio and video technicians: 30%
37. Concierges: 29%
38. Order clerks: 28%
39. Real estate sales agents: 27%
40. Pharmacists: 26%
41. Accountants and auditors: 24%
42. Mechanical engineers: 23%
43. Industrial engineers: 17%
44. Film and video editors: 17%