Last week, I asked Sam Altman a question that has defined my career. I was sitting in an intimate OpenAI builder town hall with about 50 people when I raised my hand: How can AI be used to solve long-standing economic gaps, like the gender wage gap?
His answer was immediate. AI, he said, should be “an equalizing force in society.”
I agree. But right now, it isn’t. Right now, AI is making the gender gap worse.
The numbers are stark. A study published in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences found that women are 16 percentage points less likely than men to use generative AI tools for work. According to Deloitte, only 28% of women report using AI regularly, compared to 45% of men. Mobile download data shows women comprise just 27% of ChatGPT app users.
The gap is widest among the youngest workers. Among Gen Z, 71% of men use generative AI weekly compared to 59% of women. These are the workers who will carry AI skills, or the lack of them, throughout 40-year careers. The compounding effect is staggering.
