20 August 2026

Women fill only 26 percent of new US AI job positions

• LinkedIn data found women made up 26% of AI job hires in the US last year versus roughly 50% in non-AI roles.
• Technical positions showed the largest gender gap, with men filling 82% of hires while lower-paid data annotation work remained closer to balanced.
• The disparity suggests AI hiring concentrates women in less technical, lower-paid positions rather than engineering and research roles.

How it was covered

MindstreamAdam Biddlecombe

New LinkedIn data shows women made up just 26% of new AI job hires in the US last year, compared to roughly 50% in non-AI roles. The gap widens significantly in top technical roles where 82% of hires were men, while lower-paid data annotation jobs remained more balanced at roughly 50/50.