How AI is Breaking Barriers for Female Entrepreneurs

The Year of AI Hype and Imbalance

2024 proved to be the year artificial intelligence fever in Silicon Valley peaked. Startups as well as tech giants would pursue massive valuations, moonshot innovations, with AI being portrayed as one of the transformative forces on earth. Yet, in the euphoria, doubts emerged over its practical utility, and for most businesses and people, AI was still an abstract idea. Worse still, the gender gap within the tech sector seemed to be carrying over into this new world. Research found that women comprised only 26% of AI and data jobs worldwide, casting concerns over the kinds of biases that many view as the defining technology of tomorrow.

Women Redefining AI – A Human-Centered Approach

Amid the hype and staggering statistics, a group of visionary women emerged, redefining AI’s role in society. These female founders are not just advancing technology—they are using AI to tackle pressing human challenges shaped by their lived experiences. By prioritizing accessibility and inclusivity, they demonstrate that AI can transcend technical complexity to deliver meaningful solutions.

Unlike traditional tech entrepreneurs, these women leverage AI without necessarily having deep technical expertise. Modern AI tools have democratized innovation, empowering founders with diverse backgrounds to address real-world problems effectively. Their journeys illustrate AI’s potential to bridge gaps and empower underrepresented voices. 

Nia Castelly – Simplifying Privacy Compliance with AI

For Nia Castelly, AI is something that solves a challenge pressing to her during her days as product counsel at Google Play. Developers were finding themselves drowning in regulatory work, spending more time figuring out how to comply with the privacy policy than writing any code. Recognizing an inefficiency, Castelly co-founded Checks – an AI tool, which automates the process of reviewing privacy policies, monitoring data handling, identifying potential issues early on to allow developers to focus more on innovation rather than bureaucratic work.

Google’s acquisition of Checks in 2023 made its value transformational. “Developers want to create, not get bogged down by legal hurdles,” says Castelly. “Our AI simplifies the regulatory landscape, helping developers build trustworthy apps.”

While technology remains the focus, Castelly highlights how AI also works to advance diversity in the tech space. “AI careers aren’t linear; they can break barriers for minorities and women,” she said. “But visibility remains a challenge. Women are driving incredible innovations with AI, but their stories often go untold.”

Cathy Huang – Democratizing Career Access

Cathy Huang’s history in AI entrepreneurship comes as a result of growing up in Detroit’s public housing system and foster care system. Her experiences reflect shortcomings in education and access in the career sector for disenfranchised groups, and “many young people feel disconnected from opportunities aligned with their skills and passion,” Huang says. According to Huang, it all translates into billions annually to the economy in lost productivity.

To solve this, Huang began Folio, preparing students for an AI-first workforce. Folio creates a difference between education tools and jobs by using subsidies to pay wages for working. “For kids like me, AI isn’t just about learning technology but about leveling the playing field,” says Huang. “We are creating a new generation that is inclusive and purpose-driven, equipped and ready for the future.”

Maya Mikhailov – Democratizing AI for Mid-Sized Businesses

Retail tech veteran Maya Mikhailov is on a mission to democratize AI for the mid-sized businesses that get lost in the noise of the tech giants. “The conversation around AI in retail focuses on billion-dollar budgets and advanced tech teams,” Mikhailov observes. “But what about the businesses that lack these resources yet still need to compete?”

Based on her experience, Mikhailov launched SAVVI AI, a platform that makes AI accessible and actionable for smaller enterprises. With the combination of human intuition and data-driven insights, SAVVI AI empowers businesses to understand why customers behave in certain ways, not just what they do.

“AI should not require a team of data scientists to implement,” Mikhailov insists. “We are empowering businesses to make smarter decisions without overcomplicating the process.”

The Future of AI – Inclusivity and Real-World Impact

With these three founders offering an alternative vision for the future, one that focuses on real human problems, it shows just how transformative AI could be if it put emphasis on accessibility and inclusivity, as their ventures in Checks, Folio, and SAVVI AI will reveal.

By simplifying compliance, democratizing education, and empowering businesses, these women prove that diverse perspectives are not just valuable, but essential for building AI that benefits everyone. “The future of AI isn’t about bigger models,” Castelly reflects. “It’s about making technology more human, more accessible, and more inclusive.”