AI exposure: Fashion Designers
Design clothing and accessories. Create original designs or adapt fashion trends.
Reading this score
computed49.1% of this occupation's weighted task load is exposed, which puts Fashion Designers at the 87th percentile of 923 occupations. The capability is largely there. Its average task scores 2.7 out of 4 on what a current system can produce, and the frictions that hold other jobs in place are comparatively weak here.
What holds the line here is context. Across this occupation's 20 tasks it averages 1.62 out of 3, the highest of the five friction dimensions. In plain terms, the work depends on knowledge the model cannot hold. Much of this job runs on things that were never written down: what this particular organisation does, what happened last week, what the person across the table actually meant. That context is the barrier, and it erodes as systems are given more access.
The most exposed thing this job does is Attend fashion shows and review garment magazines and manuals to gather information about..., at 86.7%. The least is Test fabrics or oversee testing so that garment care labels can be created, at 11.7%. A gap of 75.0% 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 arts, design, entertainment, sports and media occupations, this one is more exposed than most. The median across the 40 roles in the group is 36.4%, and only 10 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 20 tasks, 17 are currently banded exposed, 0 assisted and 3 untouched. For that distribution to shift materially would take systems being given deeper access to the organisation's own records and history, which is already happening. The score is re-computed every quarter against a fresh capability reference, and the change is published rather than quietly applied.
Task by task
20 tasks, O*NET 31.0| Task | Exposed | Assisted | Untouched | Importance | Band |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Attend fashion shows and review garment magazines and manuals to gather information about fashion trends and consumer preferences. | 86.7% | 13.3% | 0.0% | 3.68 | exposed |
| Visit textile showrooms to keep up-to-date on the latest fabrics. | 86.7% | 13.3% | 0.0% | 3.47 | exposed |
| Research the styles and periods of clothing needed for film or theatrical productions. | 86.7% | 13.3% | 0.0% | 3.51 | exposed |
| Determine prices for styles. | 61.3% | 26.2% | 12.5% | 4.25 | exposed |
| Sketch rough and detailed drawings of apparel or accessories, and write specifications such as color schemes, construction, material types, and accessory requirements. | 57.5% | 17.5% | 25.0% | 4.81 | exposed |
| Provide sample garments to agents and sales representatives, and arrange for showings of sample garments at sales meetings or fashion shows. | 55.0% | 20.0% | 25.0% | 3.98 | exposed |
| Identify target markets for designs, looking at factors such as age, gender, and socioeconomic status. | 55.0% | 20.0% | 25.0% | 3.91 | exposed |
| Develop a group of products or accessories, and market them through venues such as boutiques or mail-order catalogs. | 52.5% | 22.5% | 25.0% | 3.95 | exposed |
| Examine sample garments on and off models, modifying designs to achieve desired effects. | 50.0% | 25.0% | 25.0% | 4.30 | exposed |
| Adapt other designers' ideas for the mass market. | 50.0% | 25.0% | 25.0% | 3.46 | exposed |
| Design custom clothing and accessories for individuals, retailers, or theatrical, television, or film productions. | 50.0% | 25.0% | 25.0% | 3.62 | exposed |
| Read scripts and consult directors and other production staff to develop design concepts and plan productions. | 50.0% | 25.0% | 25.0% | 3.36 | exposed |
| Confer with sales and management executives or with clients to discuss design ideas. | 45.0% | 30.0% | 25.0% | 4.11 | exposed |
| Collaborate with other designers to coordinate special products and designs. | 45.0% | 30.0% | 25.0% | 3.74 | exposed |
| Select materials and production techniques to be used for products. | 33.3% | 16.7% | 50.0% | 4.09 | exposed |
| Direct and coordinate workers involved in drawing and cutting patterns and constructing samples or finished garments. | 30.0% | 20.0% | 50.0% | 3.96 | exposed |
| Purchase new or used clothing and accessory items as needed to complete designs. | 30.0% | 20.0% | 50.0% | 3.62 | exposed |
| Draw patterns for articles designed, cut patterns, and cut material according to patterns, using measuring instruments and scissors. | 16.7% | 8.3% | 75.0% | 3.82 | untouched |
| Sew together sections of material to form mockups or samples of garments or articles, using sewing equipment. | 16.7% | 8.3% | 75.0% | 3.64 | untouched |
| Test fabrics or oversee testing so that garment care labels can be created. | 11.7% | 13.3% | 75.0% | 3.37 | untouched |
Task text and importance ratings sourced from O*NET 31.0. Shares computed. The occupation score is the importance-weighted mean.
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 | 2.73 | 0-4 |
| Embodiment | 0.80 | 0-3 |
| Presence | 0.75 | 0-3 |
| Accountability | 0.38 | 0-3 |
| Context | 1.62 | 0-3 |
| Verification cost | 1.12 | 0-3 |
What this means in practice
Where most of a role's weighted task load is exposed, the work that survives is usually the part of the job nobody wrote into the job description: deciding what should be produced rather than producing it, and being answerable for the result. The tasks lowest on this page are a better guide to where to spend your time than any general advice about the future of work.
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.