Researchers warning women could be left behind in AI-economy
Women could get left behind in an AI-driven economy as they are under represented in STEM (science, technology, engineering and mathematics), according to two researchers at London School of Economics. They write that governments, businesses and educational institutions must pool their resources to invest in STEM education for girls, bridging the digital divide and ensuring that AI is developed with a gender lens. Their arguments come at a time when big companies, one after the other, follow President Donald Trump’s declaration to scrap programs for DEI.
Anne Theunissen, research officer at the Inclusion Initiative at LSE and her colleague at the initiative, Lorea Olivieri Novoa, publish their warning in a blog post for LSE Business Review.
It coincides with the Artificial Intelligence Action Summit in Paris where the Commission President, Ursula von der Leyen, launched InvestAI, an initiative to mobilise €200 billion for investment in AI, including a new European fund of €20 billion for AI gigafactories.
“This large AI infrastructure is needed to allow open, collaborative development of the most complex AI models and to make Europe an AI continent”, the Commission says in a statement.
Zinnya del Villar, director at Data-Pop Alliance, a think tank created by Harvard Humanitarian Initiative, MIT Connection Science and ODI Global, told UN Women that AI could help governments assess the potential gender impacts of proposed laws and help prevent gender discrimination and inequality.
AI is tracking gender representation in leadership roles and can encourage the use of gender quotas to address inequalities, according to Zinnya del Villar.
The LSE researchers note that 79% of employed women in the US work in jobs at high risk of automation, compared to 58% of men and for every seven men whose occupations are susceptible to disruption and automation, there are ten women in the same situation.
A particular group is more disadvantaged than others. ….women with low(er) incomes tend to be in more vulnerable forms of employment compared to their male counterparts, they stress.
“The possibility of artificial intelligence managing our world is becoming a tangible reality. While this may sound like exciting news to some, because AI may enhance productivity, improve decision-making and reduce human error, we must recognise that it will fundamentally change how we work and live in the near future, aside from its noticeable effect on various jobs.”
They write that gendered influence of AI goes beyond mere job displacement. Data from LinkedIn indicates that the share of women in STEM has been consistently lower than that of men. This has limited their ability to take part in the advancement and utilisation of AI.
“Men make up the greater share of the global STEM workforce, with women constituting only about 29.2 per cent (and only 22 per cent in AI specifically). This lack of female representation restricts their influence on shaping the future of work. New jobs and skills will become necessary as AI transforms industries.”
“Women not well represented in these areas could get left behind in the shift to an AI-driven economy. This could worsen existing gender disparities in the job market, as women are predominantly found in lower-paying, less stable roles.”
“Emerging AI-driven sectors are likely to create new, high-paying jobs, but men may dominate these roles due to their higher participation rates in STEM. Therefore, we can imagine artificial intelligence as a two-sided coin: it offers us a promising future with a myriad of technological advances, efficiency, and innovation. At the same time, it presents us with an uncertain future and the potential to go backward in other areas.”
“Algorithms and other digital tools perpetuate gender biases when it comes to recruitment processes, and, as a result, it slows women’s professional development. While dedicated action has been taken to reduce inequality between women and the rest of the world, artificial intelligence has the potential to increase it even further than before.”
“The intersection of AI, automation and gender presents a complex and urgent challenge. While increasing productivity may be enticing, the effects on women cannot be dismissed.”
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