Breaking Barriers: How are Women Shaping the AI Landscape?
Throughout history, women have made significant contributions to major tech milestones, from the moon landing and the invention of WiFi to the launch of the world’s first interactive personal computer and the advent of modern-day AI tools such as ChatGPT.
Despite this, women remain underrepresented in the industry. While progress has been made in the past years, there is still much work to be done.
A study from the World Economic Forum found that women make up only 29% of STEM employment, compared to nearly 50% in non-STEM fields. From 2016 to 2022, overall AI talent saw a six-fold increase, but female representation increased by only 4%. Women made up about 30% of all AI professionals in 2023.
Why do we need more women in AI?
Women make up around half of the world's population, yet they are significantly underrepresented in the development of AI technology. This lack of representation limits AI's ability to truly understand and reflect diverse human experiences, potentially perpetuating outdated stereotypes in the future.
Overcoming Gender Biases
This lack of diversity can lead to biases in AI models. AI does not ‘produce’ information; instead, it represents human thoughts and data. That is why AI systems often reflect the biases of their creators.
For example, a study from October 2023 found that ChatGPT and Alpaca showed gender biases when asked to write recommendation letters. Words such as ‘expert’ and ‘thinker’ were used for men, while women were described with words like ‘beauty’ or ‘grace.’
Additionally, research by Dr. Joy Buolamwini found that some AI algorithms are unable to detect dark-skinned faces or classify women accurately. Her findings led her to release a documentary called Coded Bias – available on Netflix.
Bringing diverse ideas and solutions
Having a more diverse group of people involved in AI innovation allows for a broader range of ideas and solutions, especially for problems specific to different groups.
The FemTech industry has lately emerged as a big market, with the global market size reaching $47 billion in 2022 and expected to surpass $108 billion by 2032. Common solutions revolve around maternal health, menstrual products, gynecological devices, and fertility solutions.
According to a study by McKinsey, the industry is powered by women: more than 70% of FemTech companies had at least one female founder – compared with a norm of 20%.
It also presents opportunities for big players in the market: for instance, L’Oréal partnered with Clue – an AI period-tracking app – to research the relationship between skin health and the menstrual cycle.
Increased productivity and profitability
Diversity is not just a moral imperative; it also drives tangible business benefits. McKinsey's study found that companies with diverse boards outperformed financially by 27%. Moreover, workplaces with higher gender diversity witnessed a significant 48% boost in productivity.
For example, BoardReady, a Seattle-based non-profit, released a report examining the correlation between board diversity and company revenue. Results showed that company performance increased with increasing levels of gender, age, and racial diversity in the boards of directors.
What can be done to improve the situation?
To improve women's representation in AI fields, concrete actions are imperative:
Encouraging STEM education and mentorship:
Recent studies have shown a gap in the adoption of AI tools, such as ChatGPT, with only 35% of women using them compared to 48% of men. Tailored IT training workshops can equip women with the skills needed to utilize these tools in their professional roles.
It is also crucial to nurture early interest in young girls in STEM fields by providing STEM education and introducing role models to combat stereotypes.
Though there's a promising influx of women graduating with STEM degrees, the pace of change needs a boost to attain gender equality in tech. Organizations like Girls Who Code are helping increase the number of women in computer science by offering programs and courses, especially for women.
My charity, 21st Century Girl, delivers free coding, AI, metaverse, Web3, and robotics classes for girls in Singapore.
Increase retention rate in AI - Supporting Career Advancement
Research suggests that female interest in STEM declines as they progress, suggesting systemic issues, for example:
Parents of young girls may unconsciously display stereotypical behavior, as STEM fields are seen to be more ‘masculine.’ This leads to young girls gravitating towards non-STEM fields in higher education.
Research shows that women in STEM are trusted less than their male peers, which further discourages them.
As women advance in their careers, the lack of female representation around them can lead to a sense of isolation, with statistics showing that around 50% of women in tech roles leave their jobs by the age of 35.
A study revealed that only 8% of portrayals of AI professionals in 100 years of films feature women, with around 50% showing them as subordinates to men.
McKinsey identifies critical ‘drop-off points,’ with an 18% decline from primary to university education and a further 15% drop from university to the workforce.
This, in turn, leads to a ‘positive feedback loop,’ causing more young girls to be discouraged from pursuing careers in tech.
To address this, platforms connecting female founders with experienced investors and advisors can help combat 'imposter syndrome' and encourage women to stay in the AI and tech fields. Some companies have implemented much-needed programs such as Google’s Women Techmakers – which supports career growth and retention of women in AI.
Encouraging investments in female-founded startups:
Another major challenge is the disparity in capital raised by female-founded AI companies compared to their male counterparts.
Studies show a stark difference, with female-founded companies raising 4x less capital per deal than male-founded ones, dropping to 6x less specifically in AI. For instance, 77% of venture capital investments in the UK went to startups without female founders in 2022.
To improve these figures, addressing unconscious bias is essential. Training programs and diversity initiatives can foster a more inclusive environment. Targeted funding initiatives for women-founded AI startups can provide crucial support.
Organizations such as the AI Impact Alliance (AIIA), AI4ALL, and Women in Machine Learning & Data Science (WiMLDS) offer grants and policy innovation programs and host conferences to empower women in AI.
In 2023, there were positive signs of progress, with female-founded AI startups like Siena AI, Tech Spark AI, and Malou securing substantial funding. There is also a positive trend in the US, with investments in AI startups featuring at least one female founder rising from 11.5% in 2019 to 15.38% in 2022.
Improved representation - Women in leadership roles
Having more women in leadership positions can inspire younger generations to pursue tech careers, breaking stereotypes and creating a more inclusive industry.
Female AI leaders, such as Dr. Fei-Fei Li, co-director of the Stanford Institute for Human-Centered AI, and Claire Delaunay, VP Engineering at NVIDIA, serve as role models for the next generation of AI leaders, reflecting what a more inclusive AI community can and should look like.
Addressing Bias in Hiring
Implementing blind recruitment processes can help mitigate bias in hiring practices. Removing identifying information, such as gender, from job applications allows for focusing on qualifications and skills rather than unconscious biases.
For example, Amazon scrapped its AI recruiting tool after it was found to be biased against women. The tool was intended to review job applications and give candidates a score. However, it was trained on data submitted mostly by males, and the model learned that male candidates were preferable over women.
Many companies, such as CFC Big Ideas, have turned to 'blind hiring,' where resumes are processed to only display relevant qualifications and skills. Shortlisted candidates then participate in online interviews using avatars, with their voices edited to sound uniform. Hiring managers meet the applicants only after extending a job offer.
Celebrating remarkable women in AI: A recap of last year
From automating dental checkups to using AI to recognize emotions, women continue to trickle steadily into AI and make an impact.
I love celebrating women in AI and technology; here are some amazing women I featured last year:
Daniela Amodei: President and co-founder of Anthropic, an AI safety and research firm focused on developing trustworthy AI systems, with funding of $7.6 billion.
Mira Murati: OpenAI's CTO, who played a key role in introducing AI models like ChatGPT and DALL-E 2.
Joelle Pineau: Vice President of AI Research at Meta and Professor at McGill University's School of Computer Science.
Rana el Kaliouby: Co-Founder of Affectiva, a software company building AI that understands human emotions, cognitive states, and activities. Smart Eye acquired Affectiva for $73.5M.
Vaysh Kewada: Co-founder and CEO of Salience Labs, a company focusing on a multi-design AI chip for faster AI computation with $11.5 million in funding.
Clara Shih: CEO of Salesforce AI, where she leads a suite of tools designed to aid businesses in decision-making, task automation, and improving customer experiences.
Wardah Inam: CEO and co-founder of Overjet, an FDA-cleared advanced dental AI platform that secured $77.4 million in funding.
Carol E. Reiley: An AI roboticist and co-founder of Deepmusic.ai, a platform that empowers musicians to create music using AI tools.
Looking Ahead
Seeing these remarkable women paving the way in AI is inspiring. As we continue on the journey towards equality, it's essential to pause and celebrate the progress we've made. While there's still a long road ahead, remember that this journey isn't just for us—it's to create a more equitable world for future generations.
Let's continue to support and celebrate women in tech as we strive for equality together.
