Amazon Web Services
(AWS) has announced companies selected to AIm High – AI Bootcamp for Female
Founders, an acceleration program offering hands-on AI support on top of
business, technical and mentorship program powered by the AWS Startup Loft
Accelerator.
The vision
for the program is to level the playing field for female entrepreneurs in the
most exciting technology of the 21st century. A unique perspective that women
bring to AI is crucial to shaping its future. By supporting female founders, we
can address this gap and promote greater gender equality in the field of AI.
According to Kellen O’Connor, General Manager
of AWS Startups in EMEA, “There’s no question that AI
will be the defining technology of our times, similar to the disruption from
the internet and mobile these last two decades. Yet, only 22% of AI
professionals are women and only 1.9% of all VC funds went to women-founded
companies in 2022. Our goal is to bring more diversity and equity to the field
of AI by helping women-led startups from across EMEA to scale and benefit from
the best that AWS has to offer our customers and partners.”
The startups that joined the cohort build
solutions in a variety of industries including Healthcare, FemTech, LegalTech,
Sustainability, Business Applications and E-commerce. Startups have many plans
for the program and they are ready to work hard and network with like-minded
women founders. Kinga Matula, PhD, the co-founder and CEO of QurieGen, said: “I joined the AIm High AI Bootcamp for Female Founders with great
enthusiasm because it is an exceptional opportunity to access a wide range of
resources, networks, funding, and skill development sessions that can help me
to build and grow successful AI-based startups."
"I believe I can gain what is
needed to thrive in a competitive industry with specialized knowledge transfer
and technical training. Furthermore, access to support from AWS experts, VC
funds, and Amazon’s cloud infrastructure and partner network can provide the
necessary exposure to media and investors, giving female founders a chance to
succeed in a traditionally male-dominated field.”
What’s next for the AIm High bootcamp?
We believe that helping democratize AI will
make the technology more secure, more potent, and more accurate, on top of
helping women and minorities break into the most exciting technology of our
times. According to Lisa Brouwer, investor at Curiosity VC and the expert of
AIm High, “Empowering and supporting
women-led startups in the AI space is crucial for creating a more diverse and
innovative startup ecosystem. Programs like AIm High provide valuable
resources, network, and mentorship to help these startups succeed and drive
AI/ML adoption, ultimately advancing the technology and shaping the future.”
In the next
12 weeks, program participants will focus on developing their AI use cases,
meeting experts, getting introduced to investors and business and technology
leaders to accelerate the development of their products.
Rosilari Bellacosa,
co-founder and CTO of Syndiag, expects to do just that: “We at SynDiag are very excited to be part of the AIm High
Bootcamp. The tech and business sessions with AI experts will help us improve
product design and delivery, and best respond to customer needs. I also look
forward to building a network of professionals in the AI field with different
backgrounds and interests. The bootcamp is an opportunity for SynDiag to
develop key competence and consolidate our activity in the health tech industry.”
This article was written by Monika Rozalska-Lilo, Senior Startup
& VC Business Development Manager, EMEA of AWS.
