What do C++, thermodynamics and the laws of electromagnetic induction have in common? They all qualify as STEM subjects and they are all gender neutral. Of all the sciences, physics is one of the most gender neutral: when you fall out of a tree, physics doesn’t care if you are male or female, so why highlight innovators because of their gender? Diverse customer needs require diverse and creative solutions – and one of the great ways to achieve this diversity of thought and experience is to have a diverse team of innovators.

Research shows that women still make up only one-third of the global scientific community, with the percentage stagnating over the past decade. In some countries, less than 10 percent of researchers are women. Also according to the 2024 UNESCO report Changing the equation: Securing STEM futures for women,¹ women hold just 22 percent of STEM jobs in G20 countries. With less than 2/5 of STEM graduates being women there is currently a lack of thought diversity.

Some girls turn away from, or don’t consider studying STEM topics or careers, because they don’t see female role models in these fields, or maybe don’t even have female friends, family or neighbors working in STEM. On the principle that “if you can’t see it, you can’t be it” ABB is upping its efforts to increase the visibility of its women in STEM, so that the next generation of innovators can “see it” and considering “being it”.

Promoting research by women in STEM

As part of this effort, ABB published in 2024 an ABB Review Special Report: Women in STEM. In 2004, ABB Review published 56 articles, with three contributions from women engineers. A generation later, women contribute to an average of eight articles annually. This Special Report, guest edited by ABB’s Amina Hamidi, Managing Director of the Instrumentation Business Line, celebrated the remarkable progress women in STEM have made over the last 20 years, while acknowledging persistent imbalances.

It is a numerical fact that although the numbers of girls electing STEM careers is growing, women are still the minority. For future generations to have the confidence to select STEM subjects, they must be able to picture themselves in those roles. So much STEM work requires work in laboratories or at customer sites etc, out of sight from students and the public. It requires great courage to walk into the dark, especially alone, so we must install some spotlights (ideally low energy, powered by renewables, with circularity designed in) to make role models visible. As Amina wrote “May this Special Report encourage that growth and encourage future generations”.

Read the report: Women in STEM

Other recent ABB publications from STEM women include Suyoung Lee, Business Development Manager at Cochl Inc. San Jose, CA, United States. Suyoung explores how Cochl has now significantly enhanced machine-listening technology by introducing artificial intelligence (AI) to dramatically boost the quality and accuracy of sound and vibration analysis. Cochl, which has been incorporated as a member of SynerLeap, ABB’s innovation growth hub, is enhancing operational efficiency through AI-powered automation, such as sensor data analytics and remote monitoring of industrial assets.

Read the article:

AI-based machine listening for vibration monitoring

Ruomu Tan, together with her colleagues Heiko Petersen and Patrick Meade Vargas, have published on the subject of data-driven insights. The team explore how ABB’s Ability™ PlantInsight platform makes it possible to run a variety of machine-learning (ML) algorithms for detection, segmentation, and prediction of specific patterns in vast amounts of process data. This, in turn, enables the implementation of AI-based optimization solutions that help reduce pollutants, extend equipment lifespans, and lower production costs.

Read the article:

PlantInsight: How AI is transforming industrial processes

On the 26th of February, 2025, ABB had the pleasure of hosting three young students for a live conversation online, where three ABB employees were available to answer their questions about STEM careers.

The current brutal truth is: asked to name some leading STEM lights, the names Albert Eistein, Issac Newton, Michael Faraday, Nikola Tesla, James Watt, Tim Berners-Lee and many others may well trip quickly off your tongue. If pushed, and on a good day, maybe Ada Lovelace, and Marie Curie get a mention. Balancing the gender mix in STEM subjects and careers is the right thing to do not only for ABB to improve the solutions it delivers to customers, but to allow wider society to also benefit from the increased diversity of design ideas and applied experience. Here’s to empowering the next generation by increasing the visibility of pioneering women in STEM.

References

¹ Straza, T. (2024). CHANGING THE EQUATION. Unesdoc.unesco.org. https://unesdoc.unesco.org/ark:/48223/pf0000391384 [Accessed February 24, 2025]

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