Finding My Voice in the Age of AI

I recently watched Wicked, and one subplot stuck with me long after the credits rolled: the talking animals of Oz are losing their ability to speak. The ones who speak up disappear, and if they’re found again they’re just regular animals, with no voice or agency.

The metaphor hit me hard. Because for a long time, I felt like I lost my voice in the ever-changing world of generative AI.

The Arrival of Generative AI

When ChatGPT launched at the end of 2022, I dove in with everyone else. I’d spent over a decade building software products in the tech industry, but suddenly I felt in over my head. Resources were sparse: there were social media hot takes on one end of the spectrum and dense research studies for machine learning scientists at the other end, but not much else in between.

As a woman in tech, and an introvert, I’ve often refrained from speaking up unless I’m 100% sure I’m right. That tendency isn’t specific to me. Women have historically been scrutinized more harshly in technical environments. And in this new wave of technology, that fear of being judged felt all too real, so I stayed quiet.

A recent study shows women are using generative AI tools at an average rate of 25% less often than men ^[1]. The research suggests two major reasons: concerns about ethics, and the fear of being judged for using the tools at all.

The Early Days Of Using AI

In the early days, I noticed two things:

• The AI didn’t sound like me. I’d try using it for release notes or product updates, but the tone felt off. If I could tell it wasn’t my voice, I worried others would be able to as well.
• I feared being perceived as incompetent. Like the article explained, in the workplace, where women already have to “prove” themselves more often. Because of this, using AI felt like a risk: like I’d be judged for not doing the work myself.

So I got to work. I tested tools, evaluated models, and stayed close to the space. And as I refined my usage of these tools, I learned how to optimize my work using the best parts of generative AI.

Staying Silent Doesn’t Help

The ethical concerns are real and the topic warrants future blog posts of their own. But I will say this: by staying away from AI, we lose our influence over it. If we don’t engage with these tools, we can’t shape how they evolve, point out bias, or push for better outcomes. And we risk falling behind in a field that’s already dominated by voices that don’t always represent us.

Reclaiming My Voice

Over the years, I’ve found my most effective ways of using AI.

• For research: asking for cited sources on topics I want to learn more about
• For written feedback: giving specific examples of my own writing and asking for suggested rewrites using my own work as context
• For structured thinking: breaking down pros and cons, or comparing and analyzing solutions to a task at hand

Once I made these tools work in the way I wanted them to, I started getting better results. At Hyperfocus AI this is something we help early-stage founders with: making the tools work for you, not the other way around.

Your Voice Matters

The other day I watched a talk ^[2] with Dr. Joy Buolamwini, founder of the Algorithmic Justice League. And she said something that stuck with me:

What’s exciting with AI is there is still time to shape this. We are in the very early days of what these technologies can be and who these technologies can serve. And so I think it’s important for more people to speak up about alternative visions and how they’d like those tools developed.

Like she points out, this space isn’t fully built yet and we are very much still in the early stages, which means there’s still time for more of us to shape it. So if you’re learning, exploring, and experimenting, you’re doing it right. You don’t have to be an expert to get involved. Ask questions and use the tools. Give feedback and, most importantly, remember that your voice matters.

Because the more diverse voices we bring into AI, including the ones that have felt silenced, the more this technology can reflect and benefit humanity as a whole.

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