The Numbers Don't Lie

Here’s a fun little paradox for you: women are reshaping the future of tech, building breakthroughs in AI, science, and engineering—and yet, somehow, their names keep vanishing from the headlines, the patent offices, and the research credits. 🕵️‍♀️✨

Welcome to the curious case of invisible impact.

We’re Not Making This Up—The Data’s Got Receipts

Let’s start with patents. According to a 2023 report by the World Intellectual Property Organisation (WIPO), women comprise just 16.5% of patent inventors worldwide. That’s not a typo. Less than one in five inventors listed on patents are women, despite their growing participation in STEM fields.

But wait, it gets spicier. A Stanford study found that when women collaborate with men on patentable inventions, they are significantly less likely to be listed as primary inventors, even if their contributions are equal—or greater.

Now let’s talk research. A study from Nature analysed over one million published scientific papers and found that women were 13% less likely to be named as authors on academic research they contributed to, especially in roles considered “supportive” (read: the glue that holds the entire project together but rarely gets the applause).

TL;DR: Women are building the future, but they’re not getting the credit. And that’s a problem.

AI, STEM, and the Biased Machines We Built Along the Way

Now, enter AI. The shiny, smart, ever-so-objective technology that’s increasingly running the world.

Spoiler alert: AI is not objective.

Because AI learns from human-created data, it often mirrors our biases, including the gender bias in credit and recognition. For instance, AI citation tools are more likely to suggest male-authored papers, and resume screening algorithms have been caught favouring traditionally male terms and job histories.

It’s a cycle: women contribute, don’t get cited, and therefore get less recognition, so the next generation of tools thinks they didn’t contribute in the first place.

Cool. Cool cool cool. 😬

Let’s Break the Cycle—One Bold Move at a Time

So what do we do with all this?

First: we name it. When the system forgets women, we don’t. We spotlight them. We tell their stories. We use our platforms to amplify credit where it’s due.

Second, we design better systems. If you’re in tech, build inclusive AI. If you’re in academia, advocate for fair authorship. If you’re launching your own thing (and I know some of you are), bake in equitable credit from day one.

Third: we show up for each other. Because history has taught us this much—when women support women, magic happens. Recognition happens. And slowly, the data starts to shift.

A Note to Every Woman in Tech: You Belong in the Spotlight

Whether you're coding, creating, researching, or rebuilding the system from scratch—your work matters. Even when no one’s watching. Especially then.

So keep building. Keep pushing. Keep correcting the record.

Because the numbers don’t lie. But they can be rewritten.

💬 Call to Action:

Are you a woman who's built something amazing and didn’t get the credit? Or do you want to shout out someone who deserves recognition? Hit reply or tag @TechSheThink and let's start a thread of unsung heroines. 👩‍💻✨

🏷️ Tags:

#WomenInSTEM

#AIBias

#PatentParity

#DataDoesntLie

#TechSheThink

#STEMinism

#CreditWhereItsDue

#AmplifyWomen

#SheBuiltThat

#Petal&Pixel