Evaluate or recommend software for testing or bug tracking.

“Evaluate or recommend software for testing or bug tracking.” is a core task performed by Software Quality Assurance Analysts and Testers. Among the occupation's 30 rated tasks, workers place it 4th by importance (#27 most important). About 94% of workers say it is relevant to their job.

This is a single occupation-specific task statement from O*NET. The figures below describe how central the task is to the job and what independent studies measure about AI and this kind of work — not a prediction that the task will be automated.

Work activities this task rolls up to

O*NET groups concrete tasks into broader work activities shared across many occupations.

• Evaluate the characteristics, usefulness, or performance of products or technologies. in Judging the Qualities of Objects, Services, or People
• Advise others on the design or use of technologies. in Providing Consultation and Advice to Others

AI exposure

The OpenAI / Eloundou “GPTs are GPTs” study rates this task E1. Direct exposure — a language model could plausibly cut the time to do this task by at least half.

Exposure measures whether a model could meaningfully speed the task up — it is an estimate of overlap with model capabilities, not a measure of whether the work will be done by software. The study's intermediate score (β) for this task is 1.00. Automation potential label: T2.

How AI is actually used on this kind of task

The Anthropic Economic Index observes how people actually use AI on tasks like this one across millions of real conversations.

• 0.026% share of AI-use records mapped to this task
• 51% of that use is work-related
• Most common interaction: learning
• Average autonomy of the AI: 3.5 (1–5; higher = more autonomous)
• 99% of interactions still needed a human in the loop

Observed AI use describes people choosing to use AI as a tool on this kind of task today. It is augmentation and assistance, not a measure of jobs replaced.

Working with AI vs. handing it off

Of the AI conversations mapped to this task, the split between people working alongside AI and people delegating the task to it.

How people interact with AI on this task

Other tasks in this occupation

• Identify, analyze, and document problems with program function, output, online screen, or content. · importance 4.7
• Document software defects, using a bug tracking system, and report defects to software developers. · importance 4.7
• Develop testing programs that address areas such as database impacts, software scenarios, regression testing, negative testing, error or bug retests, or usability. · importance 4.5
• Design test plans, scenarios, scripts, or procedures. · importance 4.3
• Document test procedures to ensure replicability and compliance with standards. · importance 4.3
• Provide feedback and recommendations to developers on software usability and functionality. · importance 4.3
• Install, maintain, or use software testing programs. · importance 4.3
• Test system modifications to prepare for implementation. · importance 4.2
• Create or maintain databases of known test defects. · importance 4.2
• Monitor bug resolution efforts and track successes. · importance 4.1
• Develop or specify standards, methods, or procedures to determine product quality or release readiness. · importance 4.1
• Update automated test scripts to ensure currency. · importance 4.1
• Participate in product design reviews to provide input on functional requirements, product designs, schedules, or potential problems. · importance 4.0
• Plan test schedules or strategies in accordance with project scope or delivery dates. · importance 4.0

See all tasks on the Software Quality Assurance Analysts and Testers page.

Sources for this page

Every figure above traces to a named public dataset and the exact release below — not hand-written opinion. See the full methodology for what each measure does and does not mean.

• O*NET 30.3 U.S. Department of Labor / National Center for O*NET Development
• Anthropic Economic Index v4 (2026-01-15) + v2 (2025-03-27) Anthropic
• “GPTs are GPTs” (Eloundou et al.) arXiv 2303.10130 OpenAI / academic

Data compiled June 2, 2026. Figures are estimates, not advice.

@misc{singulariki-task-14663,
  title  = {Evaluate or recommend software for testing or bug tracking.},
  author = {{Singulariki}},
  year   = {2026},
  note   = {O*NET 30.3; Anthropic Economic Index v4 (2026-01-15) + v2 (2025-03-27); “GPTs are GPTs” (Eloundou et al.) arXiv 2303.10130. Accessed June 7, 2026},
  url    = {https://singulariki.com/tasks/task-14663}
}