Will AI replace nurses? What the data says

Nursing combines hands-on care, constant observation and human contact, which are three of the things generative AI is least able to do. It is no surprise, then, that nursing scores among the least exposed professions in the data. The more useful question for nurses is how AI will change the parts of the job around patient care.

The short answer: on current evidence, AI is not on course to replace nurses. The ILO's 2025 index classes nursing professionals as not exposed to generative AI, US projections expect registered nurse employment to grow faster than average, and employers in the WEF survey expect nursing to be among the roles that grow significantly by 2030. AI is most likely to affect documentation and administration. Forecasts can change as the technology develops.

How exposed nursing and care jobs are

These figures are from the ILO's refined global index of generative AI exposure, which scores tasks from 0 to 1 and sorts occupations into bands from not exposed up to gradient 4, the most exposed.

The pattern matches the rest of healthcare: administrative roles are the most exposed, and hands-on care roles the least. Health care assistants, at 0.14, are among the least exposed occupations in the whole index.

What projections and employers expect

• US growth: the US Bureau of Labor Statistics projects employment of registered nurses to grow 6 percent from 2025 to 2035, faster than the average for all occupations, with about 180,800 openings a year on average. It links growth to an aging population and the need to care for patients with chronic conditions (BLS Occupational Outlook Handbook).
• Global growth: in the WEF's 2025 survey, care economy jobs such as nursing professionals are expected to grow significantly over the next five years (WEF Future of Jobs Report 2025).
• Expanding roles: the WEF also notes the view of some observers that generative AI could let less specialized employees take on a wider range of expert tasks, naming nurses as an example.

Where AI is already doing the work

• Drafting notes, handover summaries and care plans for review.
• Pulling together information from patient records.
• Scheduling, rostering and supply admin.
• Patient information leaflets and routine messages.
• Alerts that flag patients who may need attention.

What stays with the nurse

• Hands-on care: medication, wound care, mobility and comfort.
• Observation: noticing that a patient looks wrong before the numbers say so.
• Communication: with patients, families and the care team.
• Advocacy and judgment: escalating concerns and speaking up for patients.
• Checking the AI: NIST warns that a confabulated summary of patient information could lead to the wrong diagnosis or treatment (NIST AI 600-1). AI-drafted notes and summaries need the same scrutiny as any other clinical record.

Where the job is heading

If AI reduces documentation time, nurses may get more time for patients. The OECD's surveys of workers in other sectors suggest a caution, though: some workers reported higher work intensity after AI adoption, and those managed by AI systems reported the least positive effects on job quality (OECD Employment Outlook 2023). How AI is introduced in wards and clinics matters as much as what it can do. See AI and job quality.

More on this: will AI replace doctors? and jobs least exposed to AI.

Pay and how to get in

The US Bureau of Labor Statistics puts the median annual pay for registered nurses at $97,550 in May 2025, against $50,980 for all workers. The typical education needed to enter is: bachelor's degree. See how this job compares in AI exposure by pay and AI exposure by education level.