AI exposure: Cytogenetic Technologists
Analyze chromosomes or chromosome segments found in biological specimens, such as amniotic fluids, bone marrow, solid tumors, and blood to aid in the study, diagnosis, classification, or treatment of inherited or acquired genetic diseases. Conduct analyses through classical cytogenetic, fluorescent in situ hybridization (FISH) or array comparative genome hybridization (aCGH) techniques.
Reading this score
computedAt 21.7% of weighted task load, Cytogenetic Technologists sits at the 40th percentile, below the point where a job's centre of gravity has moved. 50.7% of what this role does is untouched, meaning current systems cannot produce that work at all, whatever the commercial incentive.
What holds the line here is verification cost. Across this occupation's 30 tasks it averages 2.60 out of 3, the highest of the five friction dimensions. In plain terms, checking the output costs more than producing it. Where an undetected error is expensive, dangerous or irreversible, the economics change. Someone has to verify the work, and verifying can cost as much as doing it. This is the friction most likely to fall as tools for checking improve.
The most exposed thing this job does is Archive case documentation and study materials as required by regulations and laws, at 60.0%. The least is Maintain laboratory equipment such as photomicroscopes, inverted microscopes, and standard..., at 0.0%. A gap of 60.0% between two parts of the same job is the reason this index publishes at task level. An occupation-wide number would have hidden both.
Within healthcare practitioner and technical occupations, this one is more exposed than most. The median across the 89 roles in the group is 18.4%, and only 23 of them score higher than this. Occupational families are not uniform, and the spread inside them is often wider than the gap between them.
What would move this score. Of 30 tasks, 3 are currently banded exposed, 17 assisted and 10 untouched. For that distribution to shift materially would take robotics cheap and reliable enough to deploy at scale, not a better language model. The score is re-computed every quarter against a fresh capability reference, and the change is published rather than quietly applied.
Where the score comes from
judgedEvery task is scored through the standardised work activities it maps to. These are this occupation’s averages on the six rubric dimensions. Capability is what AI can do; the other five are what stands in the way.
| Dimension | Mean | Scale |
|---|---|---|
| Capability | 2.00 | 0-4 |
| Embodiment | 1.52 | 0-3 |
| Presence | 0.90 | 0-3 |
| Accountability | 2.55 | 0-3 |
| Context | 1.40 | 0-3 |
| Verification cost | 2.60 | 0-3 |
Task by task
30 tasks, O*NET 31.0| Task | Exposed | Assisted | Untouched | Importance | Band |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Archive case documentation and study materials as required by regulations and laws. | 60.0% | 40.0% | 0.0% | 4.33 | exposed |
| Input details of specimen processing, analysis, and technical issues into logs or laboratory information systems (LIS). | 50.0% | 25.0% | 25.0% | 4.80 | exposed |
| Input details of specimens into logs or computer systems. | 50.0% | 25.0% | 25.0% | 4.63 | exposed |
| Describe chromosome, FISH and aCGH analysis results in International System of Cytogenetic Nomenclature (ISCN) language. | 46.7% | 53.3% | 0.0% | 4.68 | assisted |
| Communicate to responsible parties unacceptable specimens and suggest remediation for future submissions. | 46.7% | 53.3% | 0.0% | 4.17 | assisted |
| Summarize test results and report to appropriate authorities. | 43.8% | 43.8% | 12.5% | 4.75 | assisted |
| Communicate test results or technical information to patients, physicians, family members, or researchers. | 27.5% | 47.5% | 25.0% | 4.42 | assisted |
| Develop and implement training programs for trainees, medical students, resident physicians or post-doctoral fellows. | 25.0% | 37.5% | 37.5% | 3.50 | assisted |
| Select appropriate culturing system or procedure based on specimen type and reason for referral. | 23.3% | 26.7% | 50.0% | 4.61 | assisted |
| Select banding methods to permit identification of chromosome pairs. | 23.3% | 26.7% | 50.0% | 4.59 | assisted |
| Create chromosome images using computer imaging systems. | 23.3% | 26.7% | 50.0% | 4.55 | assisted |
| Determine optimal time sequences and methods for manual or robotic cell harvests. | 23.3% | 26.7% | 50.0% | 4.47 | assisted |
| Select appropriate methods of preparation and storage of media to maintain potential of hydrogen (pH), sterility, or ability to support growth. | 23.3% | 26.7% | 50.0% | 4.28 | assisted |
| Identify appropriate methods of specimen collection, preservation, or transport. | 23.3% | 26.7% | 50.0% | 4.11 | assisted |
| Develop, implement, and monitor quality control and quality assurance programs to ensure accurate and precise test performance and reports. | 22.9% | 39.6% | 37.5% | 4.58 | assisted |
| Recognize and report abnormalities in the color, size, shape, composition, or pattern of cells. | 18.8% | 43.8% | 37.5% | 4.85 | assisted |
| Analyze chromosomes found in biological specimens to aid diagnoses and treatments for genetic diseases such as congenital disabilities, fertility problems, and hematological disorders. | 13.3% | 36.7% | 50.0% | 4.95 | assisted |
| Examine chromosomes found in biological specimens to detect abnormalities. | 13.3% | 36.7% | 50.0% | 4.90 | assisted |
| Evaluate appropriateness of received specimens for requested tests. | 13.3% | 36.7% | 50.0% | 4.75 | assisted |
| Count numbers of chromosomes and identify the structural abnormalities by viewing culture slides through microscopes, light microscopes, or photomicroscopes. | 13.3% | 36.7% | 50.0% | 4.74 | assisted |
| Arrange and attach chromosomes in numbered pairs on karyotype charts, using standard genetics laboratory practices and nomenclature, to identify normal or abnormal chromosomes. | 10.0% | 15.0% | 75.0% | 4.95 | untouched |
| Prepare biological specimens such as amniotic fluids, bone marrow, tumors, chorionic villi, and blood, for chromosome examinations. | 10.0% | 15.0% | 75.0% | 4.90 | untouched |
| Prepare slides of cell cultures following standard procedures. | 10.0% | 15.0% | 75.0% | 4.85 | untouched |
| Extract, measure, dilute as appropriate, label, and prepare DNA for array analysis. | 10.0% | 15.0% | 75.0% | 4.62 | untouched |
| Select or prepare specimens and media for cell cultures using aseptic techniques, knowledge of medium components, or cell nutritional requirements. | 10.0% | 15.0% | 75.0% | 4.60 | untouched |
| Stain slides to make chromosomes visible for microscopy. | 10.0% | 15.0% | 75.0% | 4.58 | untouched |
| Apply prepared specimen and control to appropriate grid, run instrumentation, and produce analyzable results. | 6.7% | 18.3% | 75.0% | 4.76 | untouched |
| Supervise subordinate laboratory staff. | 5.0% | 20.0% | 75.0% | 3.67 | untouched |
| Harvest cell cultures using substances such as mitotic arrestants, cell releasing agents, and cell fixatives. | 0.0% | 0.0% | 100.0% | 4.90 | untouched |
| Maintain laboratory equipment such as photomicroscopes, inverted microscopes, and standard darkroom equipment. | 0.0% | 0.0% | 100.0% | 4.25 | untouched |
Task text and importance ratings sourced from O*NET 31.0. Shares computed. The occupation score is the importance-weighted mean.
Occupations either side of this one
The four closest scores in the same occupational family, then the four closest anywhere in the index.
Read this carefully. Exposure is not displacement. A high score means current AI systems can produce this work, not that anyone will stop paying a person to do it. Adoption depends on economics, regulation and inertia that this index deliberately does not model. How the score is built.
What this means in practice
Most of this work is not reachable by current systems, so the immediate pressure is on the administrative edges of the role rather than its core: the scheduling, the reporting, the written records. That is where time is recovered.