DIGITAL LIFE

Women adopt AI at a much slower rate than men, according to a study by experts

The automation of tasks by artificial intelligence continues to cause concern. While some studies point to the dangers affecting women, they are also adopting technology at a slower rate than men, according to Harvard Business School.

We are observing a transformation of society in the face of artificial intelligence technology. Over the last two years, AI models have evolved, becoming increasingly sophisticated, capable of helping with a variety of tasks, both professionally and personally. One of the big dilemmas that has been debated is to what extent AI will begin to replace jobs and who is most affected.

Studies have been published in which women would be occupying 80% of the positions at risk from artificial intelligence, as pointed out by a Goldman Sachs study in March 2023. Two years later, the data has not yet been updated, but as Computer Weekly points out, based on a 2024 Code First Girls study, the fact that women continue to occupy vulnerable positions does not seem like much has changed. Routine administrative tasks, document composition, improvement of team processes, among other similar tasks are those that can be replaced by artificial intelligence.

Taking this data into account, this week Harvard Business School published a new study that focuses on the adoption of artificial intelligence by women. This indicates that women are adopting generative AI technology at a significantly slower rate than men. And it points out that in many cases women question the ethics of using these tools.

The study, led by Harvard professor Rembrand Koning, highlights women's reluctance to embrace new AI technology. According to the data, women's adoption of the tools is 25% lower than men's, "despite the fact that the benefits of AI can apply equally to men and women," the professor said.

The fear of being judged in the workplace for relying on these tools is one of the reasons for the lack of adoption. This could hurt companies’ productivity gains if women continue to shy away from AI, and they could fall behind in building the valuable skills needed for success. And this could further widen the gap in wages and career opportunities that still persist.

The researchers compared how men and women use generative AI tools like ChatGPT and Claude. Eighteen studies involving more than 140,000 students and workers, including business owners, data analysts, software developers and executives from a variety of countries, including the United States, Sweden, Mexico, China and Morocco, were examined.

In one example, in a study by the Federal Reserve Bank of New York, half of men used AI in the past 12 months, but only a third of women. Researchers say that in most of the studies they analyzed, women's adoption of AI tools was 10 to 40 percent lower than men's. In aggregated data, the difference is estimated to reach 25%.

Only one study points to the tendency for women to use AI more than men, and only 3%, in the Boston Consulting Group. The explanation is that women who are more exposed to technological tools are more comfortable using them.

A statistic related to monthly access to the ChatGPT website is also highlighted. Between November 2022 and May 2024, women accounted for just 42% of the average usage of the approximately 200 million monthly users.

Another study analyzed focused on a survey in Kenya of 17,000 entrepreneurs, men and women, who were invited to use ChatGPT and given instructions on how they could use the technology. Even so, the imbalance remained, with 13% of women less interested in using technology. “Even with equal opportunity in using ChatGPT, women are less likely to use the tool, which is shocking,” said Professor Rembrand Koning.

In addition to fears about the potential costs of relying on AI-generated information, “they may be worried that someone will think that even if they know the correct answer, they have cheated by using ChatGPT,” the researcher notes.

According to the study, women are adopting AI tools at a rate 25% lower than men, “despite the fact that the benefits of AI would apply equally to men and women,” the professor said. According to the study’s author, this trend may be explained by women’s concerns about the ethical issues that using these tools may raise, as well as fears of being judged in the workplace. 

The study also highlights that companies could miss out on major productivity gains if women continue to avoid using generative AI, and women could fall behind in building technology skills related to the use of AI. “It is important to create an environment in which everyone feels that they can participate and experiment with these tools and will not be judged for [using them],” the professor said. 

To prepare this work, the authors examined 18 studies, involving more than 140,000 university students and workers from countries such as the United States, Sweden, Mexico, China and Morocco. In most studies, the share of women who have adopted AI tools has been 10 to 40 percent lower than the share of men. Between November 2022 and May 2024, women accounted for just 42 percent of the 200 million average monthly users of ChatGPT’s website, and the gender gap for mobile app usage was even wider, with 27 percent of total app downloads coming from women. 

Koring identifies three possible ramifications for this gender gap. Women may struggle to advance in their careers by not using productivity-enhancing technology, which could lead to businesses and the economy missing out on potential growth. In addition, women’s skepticism means that AI tools are undervalued, which could lead to biased responses from these tools.

mundophone