Top 10 Women In Tech 2021

In the world of technology over the years, female participation and access have been overwhelmingly slow, revealing a gap in a supposed gender-equal world.

However, in recent times, the tech world has recorded several fast-rising female technology entrepreneurs breaking through the barriers of gender inequality in the tech space.

They have introduced innovative ideas that create a better world and inspire more participation of women in technology.

Here’s our list of top 10 rising female technology entrepreneurs and founders you need to know.

Number 10 – Kathryn Parsons - co-founder and CEO, Decoded

Kathryn Parsons, a British tech entrepreneur is the co-founder and CEO of the London-based tech startup, Decoded. A tech company aimed at enhancing digital literacy. As a 39-year-old tech entrepreneur, Kathryn Parsons has led her company to a global scale, hosting tech master classes all over the world both online and physical.?

One of the signature courses of Decoded is to train people with no prior knowledge in computers on how to “code in one day”

In 2012, she became the first winner of UK Start-Up entrepreneur of the Year and Digital Business of the Year. In 2014, she won the Women at the Top award for tech pioneers and in 2017, she received an MBE.?

What’s more, Parsons has been named by Business Insider as one of the 30 most Important Women in Tech Under 30 and was named London’s Most Influential People, 2014: Tech stars. Parsons is also known for championing the importance of coding as a skill.?

Number 9 - Alice Bentinck - Cofounder and CEO, EF and Code First: Girls

Another top-rising female tech entrepreneur is Alice Bentinck. As the co-founder and CEO of Entrepreneur First and Code First: Girls, Bentinck has since been advocating for the entry of more women in the tech industry.?

Her company Code First: Girls, founded in 2012 offers free web programming courses for women in Universities. While Entrepreneur First is aimed at bringing people together in the tech space to share knowledge, expertise and build startups. Entrepreneur First based in London and Singapore funds individuals across Asia and Europe to create startups.?

Interestingly, In 2015, Alice Bentinck was named as one of the Fifty Most Inspiring Women in European Tech. As one of the leading women in tech, Alice is charged with creating a more diverse tech industry.

Number 8 – Jean Lui – President of Didi Chuxing

As one of the top rising female tech entrepreneurs, Jean Lui heads one of the world’s most powerful transportation platforms - Didi Chuxing. This China-based mobile transportation platform ride-hailing service has achieved major trademarks over the years. In 2016, the Didi Chuxing service recorded the completion of more than 20 million rides a day.?

Jean Lui after becoming president in 2015, spearheaded the purchase of their biggest competitor, Kuaidi Dache. She was able to increase the number of employees from 700 to 5000 while partnering with companies like Ola Cabs, Grab, and Lyft. These companies offer Didi users in-house booking services.?

Lui was ranked 25th in Fortune’s International List of the 50 Most Powerful Women for 2017. What’s more, she has ensured that women are allowed to rise to the top at Didi Chuxing. As of 2017, women occupied 37% of the company’s tech positions. Jean Lui of Didi Chuxing is someone you should look out for.?

Number 7 – Carlene Jackson- Ceo, Cloud9 Insight

If you have heard of Cloud9 Insight, you most definitely have heard of Carlene Jackson. Carlene Jackson is the founder and CEO of cloud9 Insight a Brighton-based technology business. It has provided more than 700 businesses with cloud-based systems in the UK.?

In 2010, cloud9 Insight earned an award-winning apprenticeship provider position with a significant impact on the UK tech space. In 2019, Cloud9 Insight saw impressive growth of 60%. This business consultancy, through the use of Microsoft cloud technologies, helps SMEs to grow.?

Carlene established her first business in Brighton at age 17. Before going into the entrepreneurial tech industry, she worked for tech companies like IBM, Xansa, and Sage, giving her a fantastic background in the tech world.?

Apart from starting up a company, Carlene has been responsible for supporting the growth of digital technologies and for encouraging women to venture more into the tech space. Her innovation earned her several recognitions and awards.?

Number 6 – Emma Mulqueeny - founder, Rewired State, and Young Rewired State

Emma Mulqueeny OBE, a British technologist, and educator are best known for co-founding Rewired State and Young Rewired State. Here, a community and events are created for young people who are technically gifted.?

She is a campaigner for programming to be taught from an early age to encourage a wider intake and increased diversity in the tech space. Before founding Rewired state, Emma Mulqueeny served as the commissioner for the Speaker's Commission on Digital Democracy.?

Emma was honored with an OBE on the Queen’s 90th birthday. Also best known for her campaign; “year 8 is too late”, Mulqueeny encourages girls to venture into technology. Her campaigns give insights into the social digital generation.?

Apart from writing press releases on her blog, Emma is a Google fellow and sits on the board of Marks and Spencer.

Number 5 – Kathleen Yu - Founder and CEO, rumarocket.com

Kathleen Yu is another top-rising female entrepreneur and founder to look out for. She is one of the youngest to have graced the technology business industry.?

As the CEO and founder, Kathleen began her startup using artificial intelligence and machine learning to support a more efficient talent recruiting strategy, helping companies recruit skilled individuals in the tech space.?

At the age of 23, Kathleen Yu dreamt of starting up a tech company. Her talent management platform Rumarocket has been successful, earning a net worth of over $8 million while supporting clients across the globe. Located in the Philippines, Rumarocket has earned its presence and recognition over the years.?

Kathleen Yu started her first business at the age of 13. As a Global startup youth and start-up generation fellow, Kathleen has made massive innovations in the tech space. She has been in the tech entrepreneur industry for over 8 years and has been a major encouragement to women in the tech world.?

At Rumarocket, she focuses on business development and algorithm research. She is also an associate professor at the University of Toronto.?

Number 4 – Belinda Parmar - Founder of Little Miss Geek

As one of the leading campaigners for women technology entrepreneurs in the UK, Belinda Parmar founded the tech enterprise Little Miss Geek which is geared towards inspiring the next generation of female technology pioneers. She is also the CEO of the Empathy Business.

In 2014, Parmar was appointed OBE for her service to women in technology and was ranked 100 Most Influential Women on Twitter. What’s more, she was included in the World’s Economic Forum List of young Global Leaders.?

Her non-profit start-up, Little Miss Geek is a campaign that encourages young women to consider careers in the technology and videogame industries. She has hosted several tech events and campaigns, aired on BBC, Metro, The Guardian, and METRO.?

In 2017, she was included in the list of 100 Women to Watch 2017 on Cranfield Female FTSE Board Report, 2018, Computer Weekly Most Influential Women in Tech, and 2020, she was voted as one of the top 20 Global Diversity Figures in public life. Parmar was previously known as the high priestess of tech empowerment.?

Number 3 - Dr Anne-Marie Imafidon - founder and ceo, Stemettes

Dr. Anne Marie is the CEO and Co-founder of Stemettes. She was one of the youngest to pass two GCSE exams on different subjects at the age of 10. Getting her A-level at 11, she stood out as the youngest girl to pass an exam on computing.?

At age 20, she held a master’s degree in computer science and Mathematics at the University of Oxford and received an MBE at age 27. Anne Marie has since co-founded her company Stemettes, an award-winning social enterprise.?

Launched in 2013, Stemettes encourages young girls to chase their dream careers in engineering, technology, and science at STEM. Focusing on panel events, hackathons among others, Stemettes has inspired over 38,500 girls across Europe, earning Dr. Anne-Marie her place in BBC’s 100 Women 2017.?

Before launching Stemettes, Anne Marie worked briefly for Deutsche Bank, Hewlett, and Goldman Sachs. This British-based tech genius is undoubtedly one of the youngest female entrepreneurs to grace the tech space. You should look out for her.

Number 2 – Melanie Perkins – Co-founder and CEO of Canva

You may already have heard of Canva, the innovative web design platform that enables you to have easy access to photos, edit and create videos for your social media platforms. Melanie Perkins as the co-founder and CEO of Canva; this genius innovation, was concerned about creating a graphic environment where graphic design and image editing would be made accessible and easy for the world.?

Melanie has made a major impact in the tech space as one of the few female tech entrepreneurs. Not only has she co-founded one of the popularly used platforms, but she also launched in 2007 another startup company known as Fusion Books. This online publishing system allows you to create stylish yearbooks in minutes.?

What's more, her tech start-up is valued at over 1 billion Australian dollars making her one of the richest women in Australia as of 2021. For Melanie Perkins, a more accessible technological world for the masses is what she aims to achieve.??

At Canva, she eliminates any bias in employment by implementing policies that address any form of gender inequality in the hiring process. This resulted in 41% of female representation in the company. In 2015, Melanie Perkins received the top prize at the NSW Technology Entrepreneur of the Year award for her entrepreneurial endeavors and role model qualities.?

Number 1 - Susan Wojcicki – CEO of Youtube

Youtube is quite a popular social media space currently chaired by another top rising female tech entrepreneur Susan Wojcicki. Being in existence for years, YouTube has created a platform for creatives to not only showcase their talent through videos but earn a living as well.?

Being in the tech industry for over 20 years, Susan has made a huge impact on the world. Before YouTube, she was part of the founding of Google where she worked as the first Google manager since 1999.?

Wojcicki has an estimated net worth of 580 million dollars. In 2014, she became the CEO of YouTube and has been awarded several times. She was called " the most important person in advertising " and was later described on Time as the most powerful woman on the internet.?

Since she became CEO of YouTube, the company has recorded a major turnaround. The company announced it reached 2 billion logged-in users in a month, watching 1 billion hours a day. YouTube currently has a high percentage of female employees from 20% to 30 percent.??

In 2013, Susan Wojcicki was named number 1 on Adweek Top 50 Execs list, Time's 100 Most Influential People in 2015, and in 2018, Fortune's Most Powerful Women.

Do you know other top rising female tech entrepreneurs? What are your thoughts on women in the tech industry?