Who decides which voices get to shape the future of technology? Telle Whitney spent two decades designing silicon chips before applying that same architectural logic to something far more complex — transforming the systems holding women back. As CEO of the Anita Borg Institute, she grew the organization from $1 million to $22 million by reframing diversity not as charity, but as a business strategy. With AI shaping our future, she argues that who builds these systems isn't just a diversity question — it's a defining ethical question of this era. Read more about Telle and her story here.

What does the future of deep tech investment look like— and who is building the infrastructure to get there? With geopolitical pressures and supply chain fragility reshaping the defense, aerospace, and autonomous systems landscape, Ellen Chang is redefining how private capital, engineering expertise, and cross-sector vision work together. Read more about Ellen's story and her impact here.

What does the future of new manufacturing look like in Thailand—and who are the faces driving that transformation? As “Thailand 4.0” brings AI, automation, and innovation to the forefront, leaders like Dr. Changkajonsakdi are redefining how industry, academia, and global partnerships work together. How can cross-border collaboration unlock new opportunities, and what does it mean for the next generation of manufacturing? Read more about Blinda’s story and her impact here.

As Taiwan continues to lead in precision engineering and manufacturing, a new wave of leadership is redefining what innovation looks like. Huey Chin (Enid) Tsai is at the forefront of that initiative, advancing ESG projects and smart manufacturing while advocating for more inclusive leadership in a traditionally male-dominated industry. How is Taiwan strengthening its global edge, and what role do women play in shaping its future? Read more about Enid’s story and her impact here.

Manufacturing is entering a transformative phase known as New Manufacturing, where technologies such as artificial intelligence, automation, advanced materials, and digital design are reshaping how industries create value.

Asia has emerged as the central driver of this transformation. An often overlooked advantage behind this momentum is Asia’s strong female talent pipeline in STEM fields, with several economies reporting high shares of female researchers and science graduates.

While women are well represented in universities and research roles, they are still underrepresented in executive positions across the technology and manufacturing sectors. Global Women Asia (GWA) works to bridge this gap by supporting female innovators and connecting them to leadership opportunities shaping the future of New Manufacturing.

To celebrate International Women’s Day, Global Women Asia hosted its first ever online reunion of fellows. Bringing together leaders across fields of Sustainability, STEM, and Health Innovation, GWA continues to foster a global network of leaders working to address the world’s most pressing challenges. Nominate a fellow to help invest in the next generation of leaders.

Global Women Asia co-hosted a roundtable with Stanford University’s Taiwan Hub, convening tech leaders, investors, and researchers to discuss New Manufacturing Innovation in Asia. As we continue exploring the relationship between humans and technology during the fourth industrial revolution, we invite you to nominate women for the New Manufacturing Innovation Fellowship.

As GWA introduces our 2026 focus theme of New Manufacturing Innovation, we kicked off January with a series of roundtable discussions in Singapore, Shenzhen, and Taipei.

From November 5-8, Global Women Asia hosted its annual Fellowship Summit. This year, the theme was Women in Health Innovation, and the program took place in Boston, Massachusetts. With visits to MIT Whitehead, Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health, Takeda, Massachusetts General Hospital, and more, the week was full of learning, leadership building, and forming lasting bonds.

At its September 17 gathering in London, Global Women Asia (GWA) reaffirms a mission that feels both urgent and fragile: creating bridges across borders at a time when long-held values around gender equality are under pressure. The idea is simple but ambitious: if global challenges are to be met with credible answers, they need the perspectives of those who live closest to the problems.

From January to June 2025, Global Women Asia piloted GWA Learns: a two-tier program centered on creating valuable mentor-mentee relationships between volunteer Advisors and 2023-2024 Fellows and university students who were part of the Foundness Hatch Accelerator program. We explored how structured mentorship can accelerate learning and leadership at every career stage.

Kyna Fong is the CEO and co-founder of Elation Health, the largest and most-trusted clinical technology platform for primary care in the U.S.. A Harvard and Stanford-trained health economist with years of experience working in her father's primary care practice, Kyna built Elation to help clinicians in delivering high-value personalized care. Recognized by Inc. Magazine, Goldman Sachs, Rock Health, and Fierce Healthcare, Kyna is a leading voice in primary care innovation and advocacy.

Her writing has been featured in Harvard Business Review, Forbes, and Fast Company and she has presented at major conferences including ViVE, HLTH, and the Primary Care for America Summit. Today, Elation’s AI-powered EHR and billing solutions support 40,000 clinical users, caring for over 21 million patients.

Nora Hobbs is the World Food Programme’s Regional Nutrition Advisor for the Asia Pacific area, where she provides strategic and technical leadership surrounding nutrition outcomes. She has researched nutritional deficiencies across sex and age and is currently based in Bangkok, Thailand.

Global Women Asia (GWA) is delighted to announce Erika L. Moritsugu as the newest member of its Board of Directors. Erika brings valuable experience as the Deputy Assistant to President Biden and the Asian American and Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander Senior Liaison at the White House. GWA is honored to have Erika on our team and looks forward to her leadership in strengthening GWA’s efforts to build leadership with Asian perspectives. 

Jian (Lily) Chen is the executive director of the grassroots community organization United Chinese Americans (UCA) WAVES (Wellness, Advocacy, Voices, Education, and Support) Youth Mental Health Collaborative. As a nurse educator, community organizer, mental health advocate, health disparity researcher, and documentary film producer, her major goal with UCA WAVES is to prevent youth suicide through destigmatizing mental health and promoting parent-child connection.

Maaike Steinebach strives to close the gender health gap in the FemTech industry, which refers to products and services that use technology to support the health and well-being of women. She shares her introduction to the FemTech industry, her thoughts on addressing period poverty, innovations to look forward to, advice for aspiring innovators, and more.

Dr. Adrienne Poon is an Associate Professor of Medicine at The George Washington University School of Medicine & Health Sciences with a background filled with medicine experience. She is an advocate for Asian-American communties and researches on racial and ethnic health disparities.

Grace Meng is the first and only Asian-American congresswoman from New York State, with an emphasis on expanding opportunities for communities of color, young people, families, small businesses, and women. In an effort to address healthcare disparities, Congresswoman Meng introduced the “Menstrual Equity for All” Act in 2023 to address the lack of accessibility to menstrual products.

As a part of the Beyond SHETECH Summit 2025, Global Women Asia put together a panel of women to share about health tech, digital ecosystems, STEM education, and AI innovation. Centered on the theme "From Asia to the World: Tapping Regional Expertise for Global Impact," each panelist shared personal experiences with innovation and entrepreneurship, globalization opportunities and challenges, and how being a woman in these industries shaped their journeys.

Marine Mallinson is a London-based entrepreneur, early-stage investor, and advisor with a passion for health innovation. After building and exiting tech platforms in Asia, she now focuses on advancing mental health outcomes through investments in therapeutics, AI, digital tools, and medical devices. As a venture advisor to Noetic Fund and advisor to Global Women Asia, Marine brings both lived experience and global insight to address the improper treatment of mental health she sees in society today.