The 28th of September at AIOTI Days2026 in Florence, during the Connecting Women In Digital session “Women in Europe’s Digital Future: Building Inclusive AI Ecosystems”, I focused on a fundamental question: how do we know whether an AI ecosystem is truly inclusive?
Representation tells us who has entered the room. But we must also measure who remains and progresses, who influences priorities and decisions, and who benefits—or is negatively affected—by the technologies being developed. Being present does not automatically mean having the power to shape what happens.
I also highlighted how local ecosystems can become laboratories for inclusive innovation. Cities can bring actors together around public challenges; universities can combine technological research with insights from the social sciences and humanities; public administrations can use procurement to demand transparency, accessibility and gender impact assessment; businesses can scale responsible solutions; and civil society can contribute lived experience from the outset.
AIxGirls is one concrete example. Beyond developing technical skills, it creates a multidisciplinary learning community in which girls meet female role models and mentors, question how AI is designed and used, and begin to see themselves as active contributors to its future.
Two priorities emerged from my contribution:
1. Make inclusion measurable and connect it to accountability, particularly in public funding and procurement.
2. Build continuous pathways linking education, research, employment, leadership and governance, so that successful initiatives do not remain isolated experiences.
Thank you to Connecting Women In Digital and Dorina Stanculescu for creating this opportunity for dialogue, and to Silvana Muscella, Rute C. Sofia and Mariachiara Tirinzoni for such a rich exchange.
My key takeaway: an inclusive ecosystem does more than invite women in—it gives them the opportunity and the power to shape its direction.
