Will AI replace Drywall and Ceiling Tile Installers?
AI reaches little of this job’s work.
3/100
Low exposure
More exposed to AI than 7% of US workers.
- AI already used in
- 0% of the work
- As AI tools mature: up to
- 5% of the work
What the job involves
Apply plasterboard or other wallboard to ceilings or interior walls of buildings. Apply or mount acoustical tiles or blocks, strips, or sheets of shock-absorbing materials to ceilings and walls of buildings to reduce or reflect sound. Materials may be of decorative quality. Includes lathers who fasten wooden, metal, or rockboard lath to walls, ceilings, or partitions of buildings to provide support base for plaster, fireproofing, or acoustical material.
Where AI reaches the work
The job’s main tasks, heaviest first, by how far AI reaches them.
Within reach(1)
- Coordinate work with drywall finishers who cover the seams between drywall panels.
Out of reach(23)
- Measure and cut openings in panels or tiles for electrical outlets, windows, vents, plumbing, or other fixtures, using keyhole saws or other cutting tools.
- Hang drywall panels on metal frameworks of walls and ceilings in offices, schools, or other large buildings, using lifts or hoists to adjust panel heights, when necessary.
- Fit and fasten wallboard or drywall into position on wood or metal frameworks, using glue, nails, or screws.
- Trim rough edges from wallboard to maintain even joints, using knives.
- Measure and mark surfaces to lay out work, according to blueprints or drawings, using tape measures, straightedges or squares, and marking devices.
and 18 more
Also called
Drywall Finisher · Drywall Hanger · Drywaller · Ceiling Installer · Drywall Installer · Drywall Mechanic · Drywall Applicator · Sheet Rock Hanger
Related jobs
What these numbers mean
The score is the share of this job’s work, weighted by how important and frequent each task is, that AI could do in half the time: tasks an AI model could do alone count in full, tasks that need software built on AI count half.
“AI already used” is the share of the work in tasks where people are recorded using AI today. “As AI tools mature” counts every task AI could halve, with or without extra software.
The percentile compares the score with every job’s, weighted by how many people in the US do each one. Exposure means AI could change how the work is done, not that the job goes away. These are estimates for the typical job, not predictions.
Sources
- O*NET 31.0 Database, U.S. Department of Labor, Employment and Training Administration
- GPTs are GPTs: Labor market impact potential of LLMs (task labels), Eloundou, Manning, Mishkin & Rock (2023), OpenAI and University of Pennsylvania
- Anthropic Economic Index: labor market impacts (task penetration), Anthropic
- Occupational Employment and Wage Statistics, May 2025 (national and metropolitan areas), U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics