Women Hold Just 26% of AI Jobs Despite $100K Salary Premium

The AI hiring gap carries a six-figure cost

Artificial intelligence job postings in the United States have doubled since 2023, creating some of the highest-paid opportunities in today's labor market. Yet women are capturing only a fraction of these roles—and missing out on substantial earnings as a result.

Women accounted for just 26% of hires in positions requiring AI skills last year, according to new research from LinkedIn. That figure stands in sharp contrast to their 50% representation in non-AI roles across the broader workforce. The disparity carries significant financial consequences: AI positions offer average salaries around $177,000 annually, compared to roughly $80,000 for roles without AI requirements.

Why it matters

This isn't simply about representation in an emerging field. The near-$100,000 salary differential means women are being systematically excluded from the fastest wealth-building opportunities in the current economy. As AI skills become table stakes across industries, this gap threatens to widen existing economic disparities and concentrate both technical expertise and decision-making power in male-dominated networks.

Leadership roles show the starkest imbalance

The gender gap intensifies at senior levels. Women hold only 13% of technology-related C-suite positions at AI companies across 27 countries studied. Within specific AI leadership roles, the numbers remain stubbornly low: women comprise 20% of head of AI positions (which typically pay $236,000), 26% of director of AI roles (around $300,000 annually), and 18% of member of technical staff positions (roughly $245,000 per year).

LinkedIn's analysis identifies what researchers call a "Triple Penalty"—women face compounding disadvantages when seeking leadership roles, working in AI-specific positions, and joining AI-focused companies. At AI companies specifically, women make up 5% less of the workforce compared to businesses outside the industry. The leadership gap proves particularly pronounced: the gender disparity for C-suite roles is 15 percentage points wider than for positions below the executive level.

Skepticism doesn't explain the full picture

Women do express more reservations about artificial intelligence than their male counterparts. They report greater concern about career security, question whether benefits outweigh risks, and worry about algorithmic bias. Women are twice as likely as men to predict AI will negatively impact them over the next two decades, and they're 22% less likely to be regular AI users at work.

But caution around the technology doesn't account for the hiring and promotion gaps. Even women who enter the AI workforce face systematic barriers to reaching the highest-paid, most influential positions.

The research underscores that women's representation in AI roles runs 10% lower than their share of jobs unrelated to the technology. As the LinkedIn report notes, women remain underrepresented "in many of the jobs, companies, and leadership roles shaping AI's future"—even as they help build the AI-driven economy.

These findings were first reported by Fortune, drawing on LinkedIn's August workforce analysis.