Artificial intelligence is rapidly reshaping industries and the skills employers value, raising new questions about the future of work and what we need to do to stay ahead. For women, the challenge can feel even greater.
Written by Berna Syuleymanoglu
According to Stanford’s AI Index Report 2025 (Stanford Human-Centred AI), with women making up only 30.54% of global AI talent compared to 69.46% for men, women remain significantly underrepresented in the field of AI. This lack of representation can make the space feel intimidating or harder to enter. Yet it also makes women’s participation in this industry critically important. If AI is shaping the future of work and society, we need to ensure that women are part of building it.
Here, two pioneering women – Carina Kozole, Chief Risk Officer at ING, and Bianca Zwart, Chief Strategy Officer at bunq – share their practical advice on building a career in uncertain times, and their insights on staying relevant in the age of AI.
Between Carina’s experience in global banking and Bianca’s journey from a startup’s first-line support to the C-suite, the two leaders have navigated fast-moving industries where technology is constantly rewriting the rules. Speaking at the AI4ALL Gala, they delivered a powerful fireside chat, sharing the mindsets and motivations that have powered their remarkable careers in the traditionally male-dominated worlds of banking, fintech and AI, lessons that are relevant for all women, whatever your industry is.
A common barrier for women entering technical spaces is feeling that they must be experts before they begin. Bianca Zwart suggests shifting that mindset.
“I think sometimes women prefer to start something once they feel 100% capable of doing it, rather than just doing it, failing, learning, moving on,” Bianca explained. “But my observation is that in this AI era, it’s not necessarily about intelligence, it’s about curiosity.”
In other words, the key is not waiting until you feel perfectly qualified; it is being curious enough to start.
Carina Kozole views AI not just as a tool, but as the “biggest industrial revolution ever.” Whether you’re just experimenting at home or dreaming of integrating AI into your business, she believes that active participation is a matter of representation and influence.
“If we as women really want to shape the world, we need to sit at the table. So please get involved, because if we’re not doing it right now, we will be left behind,” Carina urged. As she explained, the stakes go beyond individual careers. “It’s for our daughters, it’s for the women in society.”
Being in the minority in a team or workplace can feel uncomfortable at first, but being different truly can be a super power. Bianca, a self-described “huge introvert,” shared how she originally thought her naturally reserved personality was a pitfall – until she realised it was her greatest asset in a world of instant information.
“Be the person who takes a step back,” Bianca advised, using it as a strength to assess whether a proposed solution is truly resolving the problem and if it makes sense. Rather than trying to change who she was, Bianca found her value in “connecting the dots” and asking the one question that changes the course of the conversation. You don’t have to be the loudest person in the room to lead.
In a fast-moving world, standing still isn’t really an option. Things will keep moving regardless, so it’s better to make a decision and learn from it than to stay stuck waiting for the perfect choice. As Bianca puts it:
“The worst decision you can make is not making any decision at all. Just take a step and see what happens.”
Carina went a step further.
She encourages people to fully “go all in” to whatever they choose, rather than staying in a ‘whatever’ space. At the same time, she is clear that this path isn’t always easy, especially during demanding phases of life, like raising young children alongside a career. Carina reflected on how overwhelming that period can feel, while also emphasising that it does pass and becomes more manageable over time.
As AI becomes more integrated into decision-making, it’s increasingly important to have not just human intervention but also diverse perspectives as part of the process. This is especially crucial when it comes to preventing the automation of past biases, such as the gender pay gap.
Carina shared an example of how she overruled an established credit-scoring model after realising that it was disadvantageous to women due to built-in biases. “It needs brave women to address these biases”
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