An analysis cited by Fortune shows women occupy just 20% of head of AI positions, roles that generally pay $236,000 annually. Women represent 26% of director of AI jobs, which typically offer around $300,000, and 18% of member of technical staff roles, with yearly pay of roughly $245,000. The figures indicate that women who enter AI-related work are still less likely to reach positions combining seniority, influence and the largest salaries.
LinkedIn’s analysis found that U.S. postings for AI jobs have doubled since 2023. Women made up 26% of hires for positions requiring AI skills last year, compared with 50% of hires in roles without that requirement. The pay difference is substantial: an average AI listing carries an annual salary of about $177,000, while comparable non-AI roles generally pay close to $80,000, according to the professional platform’s study.
That disparity adds to an existing wage gap, with women earning 18.6% less than men for the same work last year. At work, women are 22% less likely than men to use AI regularly, and they are twice as likely to say the technology will harm them over the next two decades rather than produce a positive effect. However, LinkedIn’s findings indicate that attitudes toward AI do not account for the entire difference.
Women’s share of AI employment is 10% below their representation in other jobs, while their share of the workforce at AI companies is 5% lower than at businesses outside the sector. The imbalance is more pronounced in executive ranks: across 27 countries, women hold 13% of tech-related C-suite positions at AI companies, and the C-suite gap is 15% wider than the gap in lower-level roles. LinkedIn describes the pattern as three connected obstacles involving leadership posts, AI work and employment at AI companies. The report says closing those gaps is necessary if women are not to be excluded from the economy they are helping build. With AI roles paying about $100,000 more on average than non-AI positions, the representation gap could carry a significant financial cost for women.