AI exposure: Meter Readers, Utilities
Read meter and record consumption of electricity, gas, water, or steam.
Reading this score
computed43.8% of this occupation's weighted task load is exposed, which puts Meter Readers, Utilities at the 78th percentile of 923 occupations. The capability is largely there. Its average task scores 2.5 out of 4 on what a current system can produce, and the frictions that hold other jobs in place are comparatively weak here.
No single friction dominates this occupation. The strongest is embodiment at 1.50 out of 3 and the weakest is presence at 0.53, which is a narrow spread. Where nothing structural stands in the way, exposure tracks capability almost directly, and capability is the thing that changes every quarter.
The most exposed thing this job does is Read electric, gas, water, or steam consumption meters and enter data in route books or..., at 86.7%. The least is Dig dirt away from meters to take readings, at 0.0%. A gap of 86.7% 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 office and administrative support occupations, this one is less exposed than the median of 55.9% across the group's 51 roles, with 41 scoring higher. Being in an exposed family does not make a particular job exposed, and the reverse holds too.
What would move this score. Of 15 tasks, 10 are currently banded exposed, 0 assisted and 5 untouched. For that distribution to shift materially would take capability alone, since there is little structural friction here to slow adoption once a system can do the work. The score is re-computed every quarter against a fresh capability reference, and the change is published rather than quietly applied.
Task by task
15 tasks, O*NET 31.0| Task | Exposed | Assisted | Untouched | Importance | Band |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Read electric, gas, water, or steam consumption meters and enter data in route books or hand-held computers. | 86.7% | 13.3% | 0.0% | 4.45 | exposed |
| Upload into office computers all information collected on hand-held computers during meter rounds, or return route books or hand-held computers to business offices so that data can be compiled. | 86.7% | 13.3% | 0.0% | 4.38 | exposed |
| Verify readings in cases where consumption appears to be abnormal, and record possible reasons for fluctuations. | 76.7% | 23.3% | 0.0% | 4.33 | exposed |
| Answer customers' questions about services and charges, or direct them to customer service centers. | 76.7% | 23.3% | 0.0% | 4.10 | exposed |
| Leave messages to arrange different times to read meters in cases in which meters are not accessible. | 66.7% | 33.3% | 0.0% | 3.74 | exposed |
| Update client address and meter location information. | 60.0% | 40.0% | 0.0% | 3.80 | exposed |
| Collect past-due bills. | 50.0% | 25.0% | 25.0% | 3.69 | exposed |
| Report to service departments any problems, such as meter irregularities, damaged equipment, or impediments to meter access, including dogs. | 45.0% | 30.0% | 25.0% | 4.01 | exposed |
| Report lost or broken keys. | 45.0% | 30.0% | 25.0% | 3.38 | exposed |
| Inspect meters for unauthorized connections, defects, and damage, such as broken seals. | 30.0% | 20.0% | 50.0% | 4.26 | exposed |
| Walk or drive vehicles along established routes to take readings of meter dials. | 11.7% | 13.3% | 75.0% | 4.36 | untouched |
| Connect and disconnect utility services at specific locations. | 11.7% | 13.3% | 75.0% | 3.82 | untouched |
| Install new or replace broken meters. | 0.0% | 0.0% | 100.0% | 4.27 | untouched |
| Perform preventative maintenance or minor repairs on meters. | 0.0% | 0.0% | 100.0% | 4.18 | untouched |
| Dig dirt away from meters to take readings. | 0.0% | 0.0% | 100.0% | 3.44 | 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 | 2.47 | 0-4 |
| Embodiment | 1.50 | 0-3 |
| Presence | 0.53 | 0-3 |
| Accountability | 0.63 | 0-3 |
| Context | 1.23 | 0-3 |
| Verification cost | 1.10 | 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.