Oddly it was a packed out event (not just Girls in Tech, but sex and dating too) and there was a good smattering of men in the audience (as well as one of the panelists).
Girls in Tech was started in San Francisco in 2007 and now there are over 60 chapters around the world with thousands of members. It's aim is the promotion, growth and success of female entrepreneurs, innovators and technologists. Tech start-ups tend to be male dominated and though there are a growing number of females they are quite often hidden in the swathe of their male counterparts. It's also encouraging that although it's female focussed men are encouraged to attend and also take part in the panels (though it is a requirement that females are on them too). As well as the larger evening events, there are also more intimate (if that's the right word) smaller breakfast roundtables too which tend to focus on specific topics.
The panel was moderated by Radhika Sanghani who writes for the Telegraph and is the author of Virgin, a book about the effect apps are having on our behaviours and experiences, and what the future might hold for dating tools.
The panelists were: -
- Barbara Galiza from Dattch (a lesbian and bisexual/bicurious dating app)
- Hatty Kingsley-Miller from Antidate (men are visible in the app, while women aren't and have to make the first move)
- Marie Cosnard from Happn (Hyperlocal app which allows member sto find each other if they've crossed paths but not met)
- Dimo Trifonov from 3nder (every sexuality is the norm and anyone can find people with the same interests)
All in all a very enjoyable evening and definitely worth another visit to the next event.
