The Recognition Gap: How Women’s Technical Abilities Remain Invisible in the AI Age

Abstract

This paper examines the persistent gender gap in the tech industry, which stems from a lack of appreciation for skills, rather than technical aptitude. Using the principles of Social Cognitive Theory and the concept of the “Second Digital Divide,” a meta-analytical review of 54 journal articles published between 2021 and 2025 across 15 countries was conducted. The results show that women score as well as men on technical proficiency tests, yet appreciation of identical tasks is reduced by 12% as soon as the appreciator recognizes the gender of the author. The case analysis of Artificial Intelligence (AI) orchestration for women-led startups in Southeast Asia reveals that, although they achieve 35% higher productivity with AI-integrated workflows, they receive 60% less institutional funding than male-led startups. Here, I propose the “Glass Wall” phenomenon, in which women’s technical expertise is labeled “prompt dependency” and relegated to the domain of appreciation for architectural skills. The suggestions for change include implementing blind code review practices, measuring skill delivery progress asynchronously, and leveraging the unseen efforts of documentation and ethical auditing in promotion cycles.