Careers, task by task

Surgery

Deciding whether to operate, doing it, and being responsible for what happens afterward.

Training: College, four years of medical school, then a residency of 3 or more years
Today's median pay, May 2025: $414,010
Projected job growth, 2025 to 2035: 4%

U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics, Last modified August 27, 2026

Occupational Outlook Handbook: Physicians and Surgeons

Scope: United States.

How it was done: Federal employment and wage statistics. Pay is the May 2025 median, half earn more and half earn less. Growth is a 2025 to 2035 projection.

Limits: A median across all ages, regions and employers, before tax. A projection, not a promise. It tells you nothing about one person's income. The outlook text on this page names aging and chronic illness as demand drivers, and does not mention AI.

Checked against the original on November 6, 2026.

Open the source

A snapshot of people practicing today, not a forecast of your income.

The work, and what we can verify about AI in it

Task lists are our editorial summary of what the role involves. They vary by setting. The status describes the evidence we've checked, not whether a job is safe.

Operating on soft tissue
Hands-on work
Research only
- Emerging
  A research robot completed the clipping and cutting step on eight pig gallbladders outside the body without human help. A November 2026 review reports no fully autonomous surgical systems deployed, and we found no FDA authorization of one for soft tissue.
  What this does not prove: No living patient, no bleeding. Our search result is not an FDA statement. The field is moving, so check the date.
  Science Robotics, July 9, 2025
  SRT-H: step-level autonomous robotic surgery on ex vivo tissue
  Scope: Eight pig gallbladders outside the body, in a laboratory.
  How it was done: Laboratory demonstration of the clipping and cutting step, read from the abstract and preprint.
  Limits: No living patient, no bleeding and no moving tissue. The authors say a surgeon should always oversee its operation.
  Checked against the original on November 6, 2026.
  Open the source (opens in a new tab)
Bone procedures that follow a set plan
Hands-on work
Narrow use or authorization
- Emerging
  A November 2026 review describes clinical robotic systems as needing the surgeon to initiate tissue-manipulating actions. Robots following a preplanned path in bone are a separate, narrower case.
  What this does not prove: A narrative review focused on colorectal surgery.
  Journal of Surgical Research, November 2, 2026
  Review of autonomy in robotic surgery
  Scope: Clinical robotic surgery, with a focus on colorectal surgery.
  How it was done: A narrative review, read from the abstract.
  Limits: A review's reading of the field, not a regulator's statement. Robots that follow a preplanned path in bone, such as knee implants, are a separate case.
  Checked against the original on November 6, 2026.
  Open the source (opens in a new tab)
Deciding whether and how to operate
Judgment and accountability
Insufficient evidence
Insufficient evidence. We haven't verified a solid source on AI in this task yet. That's different from evidence that nothing is happening. If you know of one, send it to us.
Handling complications
Judgment and accountability
Insufficient evidence
Insufficient evidence. We haven't verified a solid source on AI in this task yet. That's different from evidence that nothing is happening. If you know of one, send it to us.
Talking with patients and families
Human relationship
Insufficient evidence
Insufficient evidence. We haven't verified a solid source on AI in this task yet. That's different from evidence that nothing is happening. If you know of one, send it to us.

Skills that transfer

Anatomy
Team leadership under pressure
Robotics literacy
Decision-making

What nobody has measured

When autonomy might reach living patients, and how safely.
BLS has no separate line for general surgeons, so this pay figure is "surgeons, all other".

Nearby routes

Compare these side by side

Surgery

The work, and what we can verify about AI in it

Operating on soft tissue

Bone procedures that follow a set plan

Deciding whether and how to operate

Handling complications

Talking with patients and families

Skills that transfer

What nobody has measured

Nearby routes

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