Women haven’t simply broken the glass ceiling in the tech industry—they’ve shattered it along with the notion that tech is a man’s domain. More and more women can be found securing leadership roles across all aspects of tech, including the high-profile field of artificial intelligence. A recent study by Fullstack Academy sheds light on the seismic shift that is creating a landscape where women are no longer the exception but instead are earning exceptional roles.
Women may have been significantly underrepresented in the fields of science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) for decades, but they’re now making significant contributions and driving innovation.
If you want to inspire and empower more women to pursue careers in tech and STEM, then take a look at some of the women who are at the helm of tech companies and the educational paths that got them there.
What Leadership in Tech Looks Like
Although women are increasingly participating in tech, women still constitute a minority of C-suite executives in that field. But the AI landscape looks promising. According to Fullstack Academy’s study, a disproportionately higher number of women were found in AI leadership positions compared to other STEM fields. In fact, over two-thirds of the analyzed AI companies boasted at least one woman on the executive board.
However, only 10% of AI companies are women-led, a figure that underscores the challenges women still face in ascending to the top. The silver lining is that 20% of these companies were founded by women, indicating a strong influence in the field.
Financially, AI companies with at least one woman executive are faring exceptionally well. These companies command an average funding of nearly $1 billion, a stark contrast to the $165 million average for all-male executive teams. This data unequivocally demonstrates the financial acumen and strategic vision women bring to the table.
Companies with Women at the Top
Pika, a video generation service company, stands out as a beacon of female leadership in AI, with women holding a staggering 86% of executive positions. Writer, another AI-powered platform, follows closely with women occupying 67% of executive roles. Cradle rounds out the top three with a significant female executive presence of 45%.
These companies exemplify the potential of female leadership in AI. They demonstrate that organizations with a strong female executive core can achieve remarkable success. In contrast, companies like Scale AI, Unstructured, and Tractian, despite their substantial funding, lack female representation at the executive level.
Analyzing AI Executives' Education
To gain a deeper understanding of the pathways leading to AI leadership, the study analyzed the educational backgrounds of women executives. When it comes to a bachelor's degree, earning one seems to be the norm, with 68 out of 79 female executives having one.
But what fields the degrees were earned in revealed something interesting. While you may assume that most had an undergraduate degree in computer science, the study reported that a wide range of fields were represented. Although economics and biology were the most popular, the diversity of academic interests ranged from more obvious choices like math and engineering to political science, history, and English.
These female executives prove that there isn’t just one path to the C-suite in tech, and you can certainly roam outside the STEM fields in your undergraduate years and still enjoy a career in AI or other tech-related fields.
The educational path continues as a significant number also have advanced degrees. The study uncovered that 47 hold master's degrees, and 28 have earned doctorates. Business administration was the preferred choice for master's degrees, pointing to a strategic focus on management and leadership, and computer science and law emerged as the most common fields of study for 22 of these executives who earned doctorates.
These high-achieving women come from historically high-achieving schools. Stanford and Harvard seem to have cultivated the most female executives in tech. According to the study, 17 executives hail from Stanford while 16 came from Harvard University. MIT and Sciences Po, the only non-U.S. university in the list, boast 6 and 5 female alumni, respectively, who are executives in tech.
Final Thoughts
While progress has been made, the industry still needs a lot of work to achieve true gender equality. A multifaceted approach that involves education, mentorship, advocacy, and institutional change can break the barriers challenging women in these fields.
But higher education seems to be the key. Higher education not only offers the knowledge and experience required to be successful in tech, but it also helps to create a culture of inclusivity and advocacy that can create meaningful change, the kind of change that unlocks the full potential of women, allowing them to contribute to innovation and progress.
