Why men are more likely to use Generative AI
The reason is not what you think.
I recently came across a statistic shared by Melinda French Gates’ foundation, Pivotal on women’s adoption of Generative AI.
Based on multiple studies, researchers estimate that women are 22% less likely than men to use generative AI.
According to Pivotal, women’s hesitation is valid.
Uneasy about ethics, privacy risks, and the perception that using AI is “cheating,” many women are hesitant to adopt AI tools.
But that’s not the full story based on what we have learned through conversations and interviews with women who have built and/or are working in the field of AI Ethics.
Just like you would notice that a dress or pants don’t fit you, women are more likely to notice when a system or tool is not designed for them. They are even more likely to pay attention and take action when a tool or system is actively harming them and their community.
Research studies have shown that Generative AI is biased against women and people of color so the skepticism about their efficacy is understandable.
Generative AI tools are also being weaponized to humiliate and abuse women.
Over the past year, Elon Musk has made a series of protocol changes to Grok, the proprietary AI chatbot of his company xAI, which runs prominently on his social media site X, formerly Twitter. Many of these changes have been geared to make the bot more amenable to producing pornography.
Moreover, these tools are extractive and exploitative, killing entry-level jobs and destroying livelihoods.
We’ve seen similar Generative AI usage figures shared by other global institutions like the World Economic Forum.
Interest in generative AI tools is exploding around the world — but female employees are trailing behind their male colleagues in using the technology.
Most, if not all, these studies promote the narrative that if women don’t adopt Generative AI, they will be left behind. There is a great deal of chatter about women’s low usage but we haven’t seen much discussion of why men are more likely to use AI.
Despite popular belief, Generative AI adoption among men is not higher because they are more technically savvy.
Actress, activist, and model, Jameela Jamal’s blunt assessment explains why men are more likely to fall for the tech industry’s aggressive push to adopt AI.
@thetea_with_myriamfrancois on Instagram: "“We are difficult to…
“Men are ultimately more submissive than women, naturally. I think you see this even in pets. Girl cats or girl dogs are f***ing impossible to train whereas boys are more likely to fall in line. You look at the army and you look at ICE, and you look at the people signing up to do these really mad, dangerous jobs. It’s men. Men are more likely to follow orders.”
Jamal went on to say:
“We (women) are difficult to control because we don’t actually fall in line. We are not naturally submissive.”
Now that she has put it out there, the reasoning behind the adoption rates seems very obvious.
Women are more likely to question things. They are more likely to exercise their critical thinking skills. They are more likely to resist stupid technology even if the AI vendors and their shills would prefer otherwise. Men on the other hand are much more likely to go along with the dominant narrative especially, from the male-dominated tech industry.
Jamal was also asked about the men who made deepfake porn images of her and why she called for those men to be treated with sympathy rather than being vilified. Her rationale is a masterclass in dealing with misogyny and online abuse. Watch the full episode until the end.
Jameela Jamil on Instagram: "My favourite thing I said this yea…
“… I think they get off on the power of making us feel exposed and embarrassed and violated. Rape is not something about sex. It’s not about sexuality. It is about power. This (deepfake porn) is a form of digital sexual violation. The part of the appeal for them is indeed to make us feel like we don’t have any agency over who uses our body. We shouldn’t be gifting them the satisfaction.”
Jamal suggests that women reclaim their agency by turning these incidents into a “pity party” for the offenders rather than “shame game” for those targeted, while simultaneously pursuing legislation against this dangerous form of online violence.
In conclusion, rather than shaming women for not using Generative AI, perhaps men need to be trained to be more thoughtful, ethical, and not fall for the AI hype.
