The U.S. metros where AI could reshape work the most, ranked

The city where someone works may help determine how much generative AI (GenAI) reshapes their job. It comes down to what a local economy is built on, whether that’s software and data work or hands-on jobs in manufacturing, healthcare and retail.

That’s according to a new ranking from Indeed Hiring Lab, the economic research arm of job site Indeed, which scored 386 U.S. metro areas by AI exposure. The analysis, published in August, ranked San Jose, Calif., Seattle and Washington, D.C., as the three most exposed. Whether AI changes a worker’s job, analysts An Nguyen and Laura Ullrich said in the analysis, “depends on what you do and, perhaps surprisingly, where you do it.”

Which metros rank highest for AI exposure

San Jose scored 59, making it the most exposed metro in the country. Seattle followed at 57, then Washington, D.C., at 54, San Francisco at 53 and Austin, Texas, at 52. Lexington Park, Md., and Los Angeles each scored about 50, while New York City, San Diego and Huntsville, Ala., each landed near 49.