Courier or messenger
Picks up and delivers messages, documents, and packages between offices or to other businesses on foot, by bike, or by vehicle.
Will AI replace courier or messenger jobs?
AI changes jobs more often than it replaces them. How much AI can help with this work: Medium. More AI overlap than 43 in 100 jobs. AI helps with some tasks, like paperwork or first drafts. People still do the core of the job. 4% of this job’s working time is already spent on tasks people bring to AI at work (Anthropic Economic Index). Based on Microsoft research on real AI use at work, matched to the tasks of each job in O*NET.
What AI already helps with
- Plan and follow the best delivery routes
- Get messages or items to deliver, plus recipient names, addresses, and instructions
- Record items received and delivered and recipients' responses
What stays human
- Deliver and pick up medical records, lab samples, and medicine
- Walk, bike, drive, or take public transit to deliver items
- Load vehicles with the right goods and take care with hazardous ones
10-year outlook · USA
Expected change in the number of these jobs by 2035: +8%. Typical pay: $39,200 a year. US Bureau of Labor Statistics. German figures differ, but the direction is usually similar.
Try Courier or messenger for a day
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