Scheduling, email, documents and travel booking are all things AI tools now do, so administrative and executive assistants ask how much of their job is left. The data shows real exposure and a projected decline overall, with large differences between kinds of assistant work.
The short answer: AI is reducing demand for general administrative work, but not replacing assistants as a whole. The ILO's 2025 index places general secretaries in its third gradient at 0.58, and administrative and executive secretaries at 0.54. The US Bureau of Labor Statistics projects a 2 percent decline overall from 2025 to 2035, a 6 percent decline for general secretaries and administrative assistants and no change for executive secretaries, and says technology, including AI, lets staff prepare their own documents. About 314,400 openings a year are still projected. Projections can change.
How exposed assistant work is
From the ILO's 2025 index, which scores tasks 0 to 1 for generative AI exposure:
| Occupation (ISCO-08) | ILO band | Mean task score |
|---|---|---|
| Secretaries (general) | Gradient 3 | 0.58 |
| Administrative and Executive Secretaries | Gradient 3 | 0.54 |
What the BLS projects
| Occupation | Projected change 2025 to 2035 |
|---|---|
| Secretaries and administrative assistants, except legal, medical and executive | Decline 6% |
| Legal secretaries and administrative assistants | Decline 5% |
| Executive secretaries and executive administrative assistants | Little or no change |
| Medical secretaries and administrative assistants | Grow 5% |
| All secretaries and administrative assistants | Decline 2% |
The BLS says technology, including AI systems and digital tools, enables staff in many organizations to prepare their own documents without the help of secretaries, and that many managers now do tasks assistants used to handle. All projected openings come from replacing workers who change occupations or retire. The WEF Future of Jobs Report 2025 also lists administrative assistants and executive secretaries among roles employers expect to decline, as an employer expectation rather than a count.
Assistant tasks AI is taking on
- Drafting emails, letters and documents.
- Scheduling and calendar coordination.
- Meeting notes and summaries.
- Travel research and expense reports.
- Filing, sorting and finding information.
What stays with the assistant
- Judgment about people and priorities: what matters to the person you support, and who gets their time.
- Discretion: handling confidential information. See AI agents and personal data.
- Coordination: events, teams and problems that cross many people.
- Checking automated work: wrong meetings, wrong recipients, wrong facts. See checking AI output.
- Running the tools: setting up and directing AI assistants for a team.
How the job is changing
General document and scheduling work is shrinking; executive support is holding steady, and the medical specialty is growing. Assistants who coordinate, exercise judgment and run the tools are in the stronger position. Directing AI tools is itself a skill; see digital collar skills.
See also will AI replace receptionists?, will AI replace data entry jobs? and will AI take my job?
Pay and how to get in
The US Bureau of Labor Statistics puts the median annual pay for secretaries and administrative assistants at $48,310 in May 2025, against $50,980 for all workers. The typical education needed to enter is: high school diploma or equivalent. See how this job compares in AI exposure by pay and AI exposure by education level.
Questions and answers
Will AI replace administrative assistants?
It is reducing general administrative work, not replacing assistants as a whole. The BLS projects a 6 percent decline for general secretaries and administrative assistants and 2 percent overall from 2025 to 2035, with about 314,400 openings a year.
Will AI replace executive assistants?
The BLS projects little or no change for executive secretaries and executive administrative assistants from 2025 to 2035.
How exposed are administrative assistants to AI?
In the ILO 2025 index, general secretaries score 0.58 and administrative and executive secretaries 0.54, both in gradient 3.
Why is assistant employment projected to decline?
The BLS says technology, including AI, lets staff prepare their own documents, and many managers now do tasks assistants used to handle.
What assistant work stays human?
Judgment about people and priorities, discretion with confidential information, coordination, checking automated work and running the tools.