Staff at the UK’s National Institute for artificial intelligence and data science expressed “serious concerns” about the organisation’s approach to diversity after it appointed four men to senior roles.
A letter addressed to the leadership of the Alan Turing Institute (ATI) said the appointments show a “continuing trend of limited diversity within the institute’s senior scientific leadership”.
The letter, signed by more than 180 people, questions whether ATI is making it through commitment to inclusive renting and urges the institute to look at gender inequality in its senior roles.
“This is an excellent time to reflect on whether all voices are being heard and whether the institute’s commitment to inclusiveness is being fully realized in our recruitment and decision-making practices,” the letter states. It was addressed to the institute’s chief executive, Jean Innes, chief operating officer Jonathan Atkins and Prof Mark Girolami, ATI’s chief scientist.
The letter, seen by the Guardian, was sent in response to ATI announcing in February that it had appointed four male academics to lead roles in sustainability, fundamental research, health and defense and national security. The senior roles are also said to have been preceded by the appointment of two men to new special adviser posts.
“Our intention is not to undermine the professional achievements of these valued colleagues and we look forward to working with them. Rather, our goal is to highlight a broader issue within our institute’s approach to diversity and inclusivity, particularly in scientific leadership roles, with a specific focus on gender diversity and inclusivity,” the letter reads.
The signatories posed a series of questions to ATI’s leadership about the hiring process, including what measures were used to increase applications from underrepresented groups and how diverse the genders were on the shortlists for the roles. The letter refers to ATI’s action plan and strategy for equality, diversity and inclusion whose goals include providing “visible leadership on diversity”.
Last year, ATI warned of a “pressing issue” of gender imbalance in AI investment thereafter published a report showing that women-founded companies accounted for just 2% of AI startup deals over the past decade.
At ATI, management at the scientific leadership level referred to in the letter – people who oversee research into AI – have six women to 13 men, a split of about 32%-68%. The gender distribution among ATI’s total staff of 560 people is 53% male and 47% female.
One in four senior tech employees in the UK are women, according to the annual Diversity in Tech report by the Tech Talent Charter, a government-backed industry group, while 14% of senior tech role holders are ethnic minorities.
ATI’s chief executive said the part-government-funded organization was “committed” to increasing the presence of people from underrepresented groups in AI and data science.
“Our appointments are made through free and fair competition and on the basis of merit,” she said. “We recognize the critical importance of diverse leadership and welcome dialogue with our community about what more we can do. As the national institute for data science and AI, we are committed to increasing the proportion of underrepresented groups in these fields.”
