The link between women and AI readiness extends beyond the office, touching every profession, every business, and every aspect of daily life. AI fluency is becoming a baseline expectation across companies and teams in every industry. Prime Minister Lawrence Wong reinforced this in his Budget 2026 speech, placing Singapore’s AI push firmly on the national agenda.
Research points to a widening AI gender gap at work, one in which women risk falling behind not just in learning AI but in using and influencing it. Serena Chan, business owner of Chokim Scientific and a Generative AI course alumna at Vertical Institute, was recently featured in The Straits Times as part of a broader conversation on Singapore’s AI gender gap.
Women in digital and non-technical roles, entrepreneurs, business owners, and working or stay-at-home moms are finding their own ways into AI. This article shares the story of Serena, unpacks why closing the AI skills gap matters most for women, and explores how women at any stage of life and career can put AI to work for them.
Quick Takeaways
- The AI gender gap in Singapore is a workforce issue that affects every industry, not just tech.
- No technical background is needed to start learning and applying Generative AI at work.
- AI has practical uses for every woman, from stay-at-home moms and entrepreneurs to executives.
- Building AI fluency starts with small, consistent actions taken on your own terms.
- One decision to learn AI today can change how you and your entire team work tomorrow.
Table of contents
How AI Became Part of Serena’s Workflow
Serena was not actively looking for an AI solution when a friend’s genuine enthusiasm about a Generative AI course at Vertical Institute caught her attention. As reported in The Straits Times, the business owner of Chokim Scientific, a service provider in the life science and food safety sectors, chanced upon a Vertical Institute roadshow at a mall shortly after and decided to enrol.
Further in the report, she said that reading about large language models and agentic workflows left her feeling overwhelmed. Yet, she knew that ignoring AI was no longer possible. She used her SkillsFuture Credit to offset most of the $1,650 course fee and completed the 21-hour programme over four weeks.
What came after was a gradual, practical shift. She started applying AI tools to the everyday demands of running a business, summarising documents, refining emails, and conducting research, and found that the hands-on nature of the course had given her enough confidence to keep going. Before long, she was encouraging all six members of her team to explore the same tools. Her next area of interest is agentic AI, the kind that can run work processes independently without requiring constant input.
Her experience is one portrait of what women and AI readiness can look like outside the tech sector. It’s grounded not in ambition to become technically proficient, but in the practical reality of running a business and finding smarter ways to do it.
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Why Closing the AI Skills Gap Matters for Women
The AI gender gap in Singapore is real and growing. According to The Straits Times, citing a Nineby9 report, women in Singapore hold more than 33% of jobs at risk of AI disruption, yet remain under-represented in AI-augmented roles. The concern is not just job displacement, but:
- Slower progression into digital leadership roles
- Wage stagnation as AI-augmented roles command higher pay
- Reduced influence over how AI is deployed and used at work
Furthermore, what makes this urgent is the pace. Demand for AI literacy in Singapore has grown by more than 70% year-on-year across industries, including finance, education, and healthcare. It is no secret that AI now affects every profession, every sector, and every woman.
Closing the gap does not require a technical degree or years of experience. It starts with one decision to learn, and in Singapore, the tools, training, and funding support to do so are already in place.
Related Article: AI Jobs Salary: How Upskilling With AI Is Driving Real Pay Increases
What Women Can Do With AI Today
AI is not just a workplace tool. For women across every circumstance and life stage, it is proving useful in ways that go well beyond the office. Whether managing a business, raising a family, building a career, or leading a team, the applications are practical, immediate, and accessible.
Here are some of the ways women across every walk of life are putting AI to work:
Entrepreneur
Building a business takes every hour of the day. AI helps stretch those hours further by
- Generating content for social media, newsletters, and client communications
- Automating repetitive workflows to free up time for higher-value work
- Conducting market research and competitor analysis in a fraction of the time
Business owner
Running operations leaves little room for inefficiency. AI helps close that gap by
- Summarising documents, contracts, and reports quickly and accurately
- Refining proposals, pitches, and client-facing communications
- Improving team productivity by introducing AI tools into daily operations
Professionals
Career growth requires standing out. AI helps sharpen the work that gets you noticed by
- Improving the quality and speed of work output
- Preparing for meetings, presentations, and performance reviews
- Building AI fluency that increases visibility and career progression
Executive
Leading in a fast-moving environment means staying ahead of the curve. AI helps make that possible by
- Synthesising data and research to support faster decision-making
- Streamlining leadership communications across teams
- Staying ahead of industry shifts by understanding how AI is reshaping their sector
Working or Stay-At-Home Moms
Juggling family and household responsibilities is demanding enough. AI helps lighten the load by:
- Drafting school correspondence and managing household schedules
- Researching enrichment programmes, medical queries, and family decisions
- Planning meals, budgets, and household admin faster and with less effort
Five Ways Women Can Start Building AI Fluency
Getting started with AI does not have to be overwhelming. These five steps are practical, accessible, and actionable, no matter where you are in your career or life.
Start With One Tool, One Task
Pick one AI tool, such as ChatGPT, and apply it to something you already do every day, whether that is drafting emails, summarising a document, or researching a topic. The goal is familiarity, not mastery.
Build a Simple AI Habit
Consistency matters more than intensity when building a new skill. Set aside ten minutes a day to explore one AI use case relevant to your work or daily life. Summarise an article you just read, rewrite a message you are about to send, or ask an AI tool to help you plan your week. Small, repeated actions build familiarity faster than occasional deep dives.
Share What You Learn
AI fluency grows faster in the community. Share tools, prompts, and use cases with colleagues, friends, or your team. Serena encouraged all six of her team members to explore AI after completing her course, and that kind of peer-led adoption is often more effective than top-down training.
Follow the Conversations Happening in Your Industry
AI is reshaping every sector differently. Keeping up with how AI is being applied in your specific field, whether finance, healthcare, education, or retail, helps you stay ahead of changes that are directly relevant to your work.
Ground Your AI Skills in a Generative AI Course
For many women, the biggest barrier to AI is not ability; it is knowing where to begin. A structured course gives you the framework, confidence, and credentials to apply AI meaningfully at work. Vertical Institute’s Generative AI course is a WSQ-accredited, 21-hour programme open to professionals across every industry. No technical background is required, and participants receive a nationally recognised certificate of completion and WSQ Statement of Attainment upon completing the course.
FAQs About Women and AI Readiness
What does the AI gender gap in Singapore mean for women today?
According to The Straits Times, citing a Nineby9 report, the AI gender gap is real, but so is the opportunity to close it. Women who build AI fluency now are better positioned to move into higher-value, AI-augmented roles and shape how AI is used in their organisations. The gap is not a ceiling. It is a starting point.
Do I need a technical background to learn Generative AI?
No technical background is required. The course is designed to be hands-on and practical, making it accessible to professionals across industries and roles.
What is the difference between learning AI on my own and taking a structured course?
Self-learning gives you exposure, but a structured course gives you a framework, guided practice, and a nationally recognised credential.
How is the Generative AI course conducted?
The course is offered both online via Zoom and in person at the Lifelong Learning Institute, allowing learners to choose their preferred format. All classes include live teaching, with support from instructors and teaching assistants.
Does Vertical Institute offer corporate training in Generative AI?
Yes. Corporate Generative AI training is available for teams and organisations looking to build AI fluency across their workforce.
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One Decision Can Change How You Work with AI
Serena started with a roadshow at a mall. Today, she is applying AI tools across her business and planning her next step. Her story in The Straits Times report is a reminder that the gap between where you are and where AI can take you is smaller than it looks. The tools, training, and funding support are already in place in Singapore. The only thing left is your decision to start.
