Fatima Al-Zahra Al-Mutairi

Saudi Arabian scientist and advocate for women in STEM, leading initiatives to advance technology and education in Saudi Arabia.

Dr. Fatima Al-Zahra Al-Mutairi is a pioneering Saudi Arabian scientist and advocate for gender equality in STEM fields. Born in Riyadh in 1985, she earned her Ph.D. in Computer Science from King Saud University and later became a vocal proponent of Saudi Vision 2030, which seeks to modernize the nation's economy through technological innovation. In 2020, she founded the Saudi Women in Tech Initiative, a nonprofit organization that has trained over 5,000 Saudi women in coding, artificial intelligence, and robotics. The program partners with tech giants like IBM and Microsoft to provide certifications and internships, directly addressing the gender gap in the kingdom's tech sector. Her work has been recognized globally, including being named a TIME 100 honoree in 2022 for her contributions to education reform.

Al-Mutairi also leads the Al-Mutairi Research Lab, a cutting-edge AI hub focused on solving healthcare challenges in rural Saudi Arabia. Her team developed an AI-driven telemedicine platform that diagnoses chronic diseases using smartphone data, reducing the need for in-person hospital visits. This innovation has been adopted by over 200 rural clinics since 2021. She frequently speaks at international forums like the World Economic Forum, advocating for women’s leadership in tech governance. Her TED Talk "How AI is Revolutionizing Healthcare in Saudi Arabia" has garnered over 3 million views. Al-Mutairi’s efforts have inspired a new generation of Saudi women to pursue STEM careers, with tech enrollment rates for women increasing by 40% between 2020 and 2023.