Page 118 - AI Standards for Global Impact: From Governance to Action

AI Standards for Global Impact: From Governance to Action

18 Women leaders in AI and standards

This event was jointly organized by the Network of Women in ITU-T (NoW in ITU-T) and Women
in AI. Women leaders and AI experts explored the transformative impact of increasing women’s
participation and leadership in AI and standards development, from driving innovation and
boosting revenue to enabling inclusive growth in the technology sector. Through compelling
success stories and evidence-based insights, the session presented recommendations and a call
to action for companies and governments to advance women’s leadership in AI and standards.

Figure 50: Doreen Bogdan-Martin, Secretary General, ITU delivering her opening
remarks at the event
Key points made by the various speakers are summarized below:

• The key findings of the ITU-T survey on "Barriers to women’s participation in standards"
and the recommended actions for the ITU secretariat and ITU membership to increase
engagement, were shared.
• Action to promote gender-responsive policy is important and the AI for Good Global
Summit could serve as an advocacy platform.
• Gender diversity in AI standardization work is a business imperative.
• A call was made for more initiatives to create pipelines encouraging more girls to enter
STEM fields.
• Female participation in the ITU AI/ML Challenges remains low but is gradually increasing.
• Youth visibility on panels can be a strong inclusion tool and speakers encouraged co-
designing AI –governance frameworks and standards with young people.

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