Women in Data Science Worldwide

The Future of AI Agents and the Power of Community 17.09.2025 25min

Shir Meir Lador, is a longtime AI leader whose career spans startups in Tel Aviv, leadership at Intuit, and now Google, where she heads efforts to amplify AI on Google Cloud. Shir shares her journey from machine learning researcher to global AI leader, reflecting on pivotal career moves, including relocating to the U.S. with her family and embracing new leadership opportunities. Shir offers candid insights on taking career risks, navigating imposter syndrome, and finding balance as a mother of three while advancing in AI leadership. She discusses her impactful work as a WiDS ambassador in Tel Aviv, where she built a thriving women-led technical community that inspired more female speakers in data science conferences worldwide.

Navigating Career Transitions: From Academia to Product Management with Sohini Sakhar 26.02.2025 29min

This podcast episode features Sohini Sarkar, Principal Product Manager and Senior Team Lead at MathWorks, discussing her career journey and offering advice to listeners. The conversation explores her transition from academia to the corporate world, her passion for product management, and her approach to balancing technical expertise with leadership responsibilities. Sohini's career path highlights the importance of self-discovery and the willingness to deviate from predetermined expectations.

Predicting Responsibly: Claudia Perlich on AI, Bias, and the Art of Data Science 16.01.2025 46min

Claudia Perlich, a leading expert in predictive modeling shares about her work and views on the challenges of using AI and machine learning systems. Perlich discusses the importance of understanding the uncertainty and biases inherent in these models, and the need for careful evaluation and testing before deploying them, especially in high-stakes domains. She emphasizes the collective responsibility of data scientists, domain experts, and decision-makers to ensure these systems are used responsibly and equitably. She also shares insights on the skills and mindset needed for a successful career in predictive modeling, highlighting the value of data curiosity, scientific thinking, and effective communication.

Navigating Curiosity to Leadership in Tech 18.12.2024 15min

In this episode, we chat with Maritza Ebling, a seasoned software engineer and leader, about her unconventional journey from a theoretical math and neuroscience major at Wesleyan University to leading teams in the tech industry. Maritza reflects on how her curiosity and passion for problem-solving guided her career path, starting with computational neuroscience work at Mass General Hospital, where she discovered her love for software engineering. Maritza shares key moments from her career, including the challenges of breaking into the tech field without a traditional engineering background. She credits pivotal mentors and peers who took chances on her potential and helped shape her skills through collaboration and support. She also discusses the transition from being a hands-on engineer to becoming a leader focused on empowering others.

From Graphs to Growth: Mentorship, Math, and the Power of Algorithms 17.10.2024 36min

Huda Nassar is a data scientist who did her PhD at Purdue University, advised by David Gleich. Her research focused on graph alignment, using a combination of mathematics and computer science to solve real-world problems. After completing her PhD, Nassar did a postdoc at Stanford and now works at the company RelationalAI, where she develops optimized graph algorithms to help customers. Nassar is passionate about the intersection of mathematics and programming, and advocates for students to take courses in both areas. She also enjoys teaching and is a proponent of the Julia programming language. Nassar discusses how finding the right mentors has been crucial to her academic and career journey.

Beyond Borders: Elevating Women in Data Science and Leadership 18.09.2024 36min

In this podcast episode, Hannah and Chisoo discuss their shared experiences as immigrants and how that has shaped their perspectives and careers. They explore the value of learning new languages and being immersed in different cultures, as well as the importance of understanding problems before jumping into solutions when working in data science. Hannah shares her leadership philosophy of prioritizing people development, and they both emphasize the need to address burnout and create flexible work environments, particularly for women in the field. The conversation highlights the evolving nature of data science and the opportunities for the next generation of women to thrive in this dynamic industry.

From Internship to Impact: A Data Scientist’s Journey 19.07.2024 28min

Sydney Hazen, a Privacy Data Scientist at Ford, shares her journey from a college intern to a full-time role. She highlights how internships can lead to job offers and the importance of real-world experience and corporate navigation.

The Power of Linguistics in Large Language Models and AI 19.04.2024 42min

Listen to Karin Golde, a linguistic expert and AI entrepreneur, as she discusses the rise of large language models (LLMs) and the impact of ChatGPT. Karin reflects on the unexpected popularity of LLMs and the role of OpenAI. The challenges and limitations of LLMs are discussed, including the need for human understanding emphasizing the need for diverse perspectives and cultural understanding in AI development. Karin shares her personal experience of using LLMs and highlights the importance of balancing innovation with regulation in the AI industry. Karin concludes the podcast sharing about her career journey and her recent transition to working as an independent consultant. She offers advice for women considering leadership roles and emphasizes the importance of thinking broadly about one's place in an organization.

Applying topological data analysis and geometry-based ML 22.02.2024 28min

Margot Gerittsen speaks with Colleen Farrelly, Mathematician at Post Urban Ventures and Author of The Shape of Data: Geometry-Based Machine Learning and Data Analysis in R. Colleen is known for network science, topological data analysis, and geometry-based machine learning. This podcast covers the challenges and rewards of interdisciplinary work and her journey in the discipline of data science.

Using Curiosity, Mentorship, and Education to Build a Career 25.01.2024 34min

Listen to the incredible and inspiring journey of Avalon Baldwin’s career journey. A self-described data nerd, she was not only the first in her family to attend college, she went on to get a graduate degree. Today she is an entrepreneur running her own consulting company. In conversation with Chisoo Lyons, Avalon shares how curiosity, mentorship, and coaching made a difference in her life.

Fighting Crypto Crime with Data Science 29.11.2023 33min

In this episode, Margot Gerittsen speaks with Kim Grauer. Kim is the Director of Research at Chainalysis, where she examines trends in cryptocurrency economics and crime. Listen as she talks about her obsession with fighting fraud in the cryptocurrency market.

Using Storytelling to Communicate with Stakeholders 19.10.2023 40min

Michelle Katics, CEO and co-founder of BankersLab, emphasizes the significance of merging technical, business, and soft skills in risk management training. She stresses the value of simplifying complex ideas through storytelling and encourages women to engage in data science and entrepreneurship. Additionally, Katics highlights her involvement in volunteer work, urging collaboration and diversity to foster innovation and success.

Data Science Leadership: Creating Meaningful Impact 29.09.2023 43min

In this episode, Mary Krone explores her career shift from a PhD in chemistry and biochemistry to data science, where she builds financial credit models. She highlights her work’s tangible impact and discusses the challenges of work-life balance. Mary’s passion for data science’s positive potential in finance shines through as she debunks misconceptions, talks about career paths, and dives into the evolving world of data science and generative AI. The episode also includes topics of the need for continuous learning and the blend of art and science in data science.

Kate Kolich on Mentorship, Data Ethics, and Leadership 29.08.2023 31min

Kate Kolich serves as the Assistant Governor and the General Manager of Information Data and Analytics at the Reserve Bank of New Zealand. With an extensive background in the financial sector, she also has significant public sector experience. Throughout her impressive career, she's delved into areas like data analytics, digital strategy, information management, data governance, business intelligence, and data warehousing, among others. Soon after the launch of Women in Data Science (WiDS) at Stanford, Kate became an active WiDS ambassador. She has organized numerous WiDS conferences in New Zealand, spotlighting nearly 100 female data scientists. Beyond this, Kate is a passionate mentor and supporter of many professionals in New Zealand. In our episode, we discuss Kate's role at the Reserve Bank, the role of her team, highlights from her career, and her insights on being a successful woman leader in her field.

Breaking Barriers to Entry & Success for Women in Tech with Telle Whitney 20.07.2023 31min

In this podcast episode, Margot interviews Telle Whitney, a highly accomplished woman in the tech industry. Telle is best known for her 15 years as CEO of the Anita Borg Institute for Women and Technology, also known as AnitaB. Anita Borg was a close friend of Telle's, and when Anita fell ill, Telle stepped in and made AnitaB into the world-renowned organization focused on advancement for female technologists that it is today. Before running AnitaB, Telle was a well-known engineer, then a leader and executive in software and product engineering. During their conversation, Margot and Telle explore the vital work of organizations like AnitaB and WiDS, which aim to support women in overcoming systemic barriers to entry and success in the tech industry.

Srujana Kaddevarmuth | Opening New Realms of Data Science and AI 22.06.2023 35min

Srujana Kaddevarmuth is the current senior director of the Data and Machine Learning Center of Excellence at Walmart. She has had an illustrious career in the tech industry, having also worked as manager of data and machine learning and AI at Accenture and Hewlett Packard. In this episode, we talk about her career, her aspirations for data science and AI, and the challenges she met and still meets along the way.

Veronica Edwards | The Bridge Between Dance and Data Science 18.05.2023 28min

Veronica Edwards is a dancer and choreographer who, after finding that physics was not in fact the major she wanted, studied sociology at Princeton University. In her words, she stumbled into her first job after graduation, which was with the company ReadWorks, and recently joined Polygence as a senior data analyst. In this podcast episode, she talks about Polygence, her wide-ranging educational and career background, the advice she has for others, and how dance has been an important part of her life and learning.

Jane Lauder | Using Data Science to Create Aspirational Products 20.04.2023 27min

Jane Lauder, Chief Data Officer at Estée Lauder, explains how Estée Lauder combines data science with creativity to connect with their consumers, create aspirational products and support the longevity of their brands.

Priya Donti | Using AI to Fight the Climate Crisis 04.01.2023 41min

Priya Donti, Executive Director of Climate Change AI, explains multiple ways that machine learning and AI can be used to mitigate climate change. Her work at the intersection of climate change, computer science, and data science led her to co-found Climate Change AI, our partner for the WiDS Datathon 2023 challenge to improve long-term weather forecasting.

Lesly Zerna | Teaching and learning data science in Latin America (Spanish) 10.11.2022 47min

Lesly Zerna, Google Developer Expert at Universidad Privada Boliviana, is a Bolivian researcher, teacher, mentor, content creator, and software developer. Shares her passion for learning and teaching data science and artificial intelligence. Lesly says learning works best when you know your personal learning style and apply that to practical topics you are interested in.