Without gender inclusivity, India's AI growth is incomplete

Indian Express

25-06-2025

Written by Sasmit Patra and Suryaprabha Sadasivan
Artificial Intelligence (AI) is transforming India's economy and governance, from public service delivery to healthcare and financial inclusion. While frameworks like the National Strategy for AI and initiatives like the National AI Portal show India's ambition to lead responsibly, a critical gap remains: The underrepresentation of women in shaping and benefiting from AI.
India produces one of the world's highest proportions of female STEM graduates. Very few women make it into careers in AI and machine learning in India. This disparity reflects deep-rooted norms, a lack of gender-responsive skilling, limited mentorship and workplace support for women in tech. These barriers reduce individual aspirations and collectively constrain the country's potential to build a diverse and robust AI ecosystem.
The challenge, however, goes beyond representation. When women are missing from the design, governance, and policymaking processes around AI, the technology itself becomes exclusionary. AI systems, trained on historical datasets where male dominance has been the norm, risk replicating those very inequities. In recruitment, for example, AI tools have been shown to favour male candidates simply because the datasets used reflect past hiring patterns biased against women. A UNESCO study found AI tools were 30 per cent more likely to recommend men for leadership roles, reflecting how biased datasets can be unless actively corrected.
Despite these risks, AI also holds tremendous promise to advance gender equity, if designed and deployed with intention. In India, we have already begun to see AI-based innovations that address gendered development gaps. AI-powered diagnostic tools are improving maternal healthcare by identifying high-risk pregnancies early, especially in underserved rural areas. Fintech companies have leveraged AI to assess creditworthiness for women entrepreneurs who lack formal credit histories, enabling them to access much-needed capital. Educational platforms are harnessing AI to deliver personalised learning for girls from disadvantaged communities, helping overcome learning deficits and social stigma that traditionally keep them out of school.
A few initiatives in different states have shown that AI and digital skilling can be made more inclusive when viewed through a gendered lens. Odisha, for instance, has expanded its flagship Mission Shakti women's empowerment programme to include digital and AI-related skilling for self-help group members, especially in tribal and rural districts. Through partnerships under the Odisha Skill Development Authority, women are being introduced to AI concepts, digital literacy, and data-driven enterprise development, linking traditional livelihoods with the digital economy. Similarly, Telangana's WE Hub and T-AIM have created a supportive ecosystem for women-led startups working in AI and emerging technologies, while Kerala's SHE ICT initiative and its Knowledge Economy Mission explicitly target digital employment for women returning to the workforce.
Karnataka, through its Elevate Women and KDEM programmes, is investing in women entrepreneurs and digital skilling outside the Bengaluru metro, and Tamil Nadu's Naan Mudhalvan scheme is integrating AI education into colleges and schools with a focus on increasing female participation in STEM. These state-level models offer promising blueprints for how gender-inclusive AI policies can be grounded in local contexts and scaled nationally.
India's AI strategy must include deliberate, systemic actions to reverse the gender gap in both access and leadership. There is an urgent need to make AI education and skilling programmes more accessible and relevant for women. While numerous skilling initiatives have emerged under the government's Digital India and Skill India Missions, most are not designed keeping the gender aspect in mind. As per NASSCOM (2023), women constitute only 29 per cent of those enrolled in AI and data science courses at top institutions such as the IITs and IIITs. Without targeted outreach, fellowships, and bootcamps for women, this gap will only grow. Global programmes like Canada's 'AI for Gender Equity' or the UK's 'Women in Innovation' fund show how targeted subsidies can boost women's participation in AI.
India must also institutionalise mechanisms to ensure that AI systems are not reinforcing gender biases. While NITI Aayog's AI Ethics Guidelines acknowledge the risks of discriminatory algorithms, companies have little regulatory compulsion to test or report the gender impact of their tools. Countries such as the Netherlands and Singapore have introduced mandatory algorithmic audits and gender impact assessments for AI deployed in critical sectors like hiring, social welfare, and finance. A similar framework in India — requiring large-scale AI systems to disclose fairness metrics and undergo third-party audits — would be a critical step toward accountability.
Supporting women-led AI innovation will be equally important. At present, women-led AI startups in India remain scarce, largely due to limited access to capital, networks, and visibility. Dedicated grants, challenge funds, and incubators — modelled on successful programmes like Australia's SheStarts or France's AI Grand Challenge for Women — can level the playing field. The private sector, too, must actively set diversity goals in AI hiring, invest in leadership training programmes for women, and expand career re-entry pathways.
Integrating gender into AI is not merely a question of fairness. It is one of the national competitiveness. The IMF has estimated that equal participation of women in the workforce could boost India's GDP by 27 per cent. If AI is to be a core driver of India's future economy, then gender inclusion must be a strategic priority, not an afterthought. Gender-inclusive AI also aligns with the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) on education, equity, and work.
AI will define India's future, but who defines AI matters. Ensuring that women are not only consumers of AI but also its architects, regulators, and innovators is essential for building a digital economy that truly serves all. With the right policy focus, regulatory intent, and cross-sectoral support, India can set a global precedent in building AI that is not only powerful but also inclusive.
Patra is a BJD Rajya Sabha MP from Odisha. Sadasivan is Senior Vice President, Public Policy at Chase India