AI:AT at the Launch of the “She goes AI – Connect” Initiative
On 15 June 2026, Ann-Sophie Brenk (AI Business Lead), Mara Weinblatt (Innovation Ecosystem & Partnerships Lead), and Katharina Röck (AI Expert & Scientific Collaborations Lead) represented AI:AT at the official launch of the nationwide “She goes AI – Connect” initiative.
The event brought together representatives from politics, academia, business, and civil society to strengthen the role of women in the development and design of artificial intelligence.
A particular highlight of the day was the reception that followed at the Office of the President, hosted by Federal President Alexander Van der Bellen and Doris Schmidauer. The gathering provided an opportunity to exchange ideas with leading figures in the Austrian AI ecosystem and underscored the societal relevance of an inclusive AI future.
Women as Shapers of the Future of AI
The “She goes AI” initiative is dedicated to inspiring more women to pursue careers in artificial intelligence, building their skills, highlighting female role models, and connecting existing networks. This effort is driven by persistent imbalances: women remain significantly underrepresented in AI-related professions and leadership positions.
Numerous contributions have emphasised that the development of AI is not only a technological challenge but also a societal one. Broad participation from a variety of perspectives is crucial to creating innovative, fair, and responsible AI systems.
The initiative focuses on three key areas of action: promoting AI skills, raising the visibility of female role models, and strengthening connections among existing communities and organisations. The goal is to support women throughout their educational and career journeys and to increase their participation in shaping AI in research, business, and society.
Networking as the Key to a Strong AI Ecosystem
As part of the network forum, numerous experts, initiatives, and organizations from Austria’s AI community came together to share experiences and develop shared visions for a diverse AI future. Presentations and discussions impressively demonstrated how many dedicated stakeholders are already working today to create an innovative, responsible, and fair AI landscape in Austria.
For AI Factory Austria, the event provided an opportunity to exchange ideas with representatives from academia, industry, education, and politics, to initiate new collaborations, and to gain valuable insights for the further development of the Austrian AI ecosystem. The discussions made it clear that the future of artificial intelligence will be shaped not only by technological excellence but also by the active inclusion of diverse talents and perspectives.
AI:AT in Dialogue with Austria’s AI Community
AI’s participation in “She goes AI” underscores AI Factory Austria’s commitment to an open, diverse, and high-performing AI ecosystem. Initiatives like this play an important role in raising the profile of talent, fostering skills, and strengthening collaboration among the various stakeholders in the Austrian AI community.
It was a pleasure to engage with so many organisations and individuals committed to fostering diversity, equal opportunities, and innovation in AI. We look forward to building on these discussions and strengthening future collaborations.
