Apple has developed a new Siri voice, now available in the beta versions of its iOS 15.4 software, that doesn’t sound obviously male or female. The decision to introduce a gender-neutral voice is one that sees the tech giant taking yet another step away from the criticism that, historically, digital assistants have reinforced unfair gender stereotypes.
Archives
The portion of VC-backed startups founded by women stays stubbornly stagnant
Gené Teare /
Tech Crunch
Venture amounts in female-only founded startups since 2012 have remained at three percent of all venture dollars, representing $3.8 billion in 2017. Female-and-male co-founded teams hovered between seven and eight percent, rising to 10 percent in 2017. Male-only founded teams raised between 86 and 90 percent of all venture invested dollars, dipping to 86 percent in 2017.
Girls Who Code gets a Disney Imagineering boost
Matthew Panzarino /
Tech Crunch
“Disney opened the door to so many opportunities for our girls,” says Girls Who Code VP of Marketing and Communications Kelly Parisi. “You can’t be what you can’t see, and Disney did a phenomenal job showing our girls incredible role models and experiences. From bringing in fantastic speakers, running a panel with women in tech, to showing the girls the technology behind the magic at Disneyland, they gave our girls a glimpse of so many potential futures.”
Pinterest beat hiring goals for women in engineering, missed for underrepresented minorities
Megan Rose Dickey /
Tech Crunch
Last year, Pinterest’s hiring rate for women in engineering roles was 22 percent, so the company lowered its hiring goals from 30 to 25 percent for 2017. This year, Pinterest increased the percentage of women in engineering roles to 26 percent, surpassing its revised goal. When Pinterest lowered that goal, CEO Ben Silbermann said the company still aspires to 30 percent, but that it would likely take more than 12 months to get there. Pinterest is currently 45 percent female and 55 percent male.