The Perspektywy Women in Tech Summit brought students, engineers, scientists and technology leaders to Warsaw on 10 and 11 June. Its programme ranged from artificial intelligence, quantum technologies and cybersecurity to energy, aerospace and biotechnology, while also addressing how women enter, progress and lead in technical fields.
Our BE-EA colleague Melanie Huber joined the CERN delegation and welcomed visitors at the CERN booth, speaking about her experience at the Organization and the technical work behind CERN’s research programme.
“I particularly enjoyed encouraging young women to consider applying to CERN,” said Melanie. “The discussions around artificial intelligence were also fascinating, precisely because they brought together so many different views on the use of AI.”
The summit combined these encounters with a closer look at the conditions under which women build technical careers. Sessions challenged the expectation of the “perfect expert,” examined the future of junior roles and discussed inclusion, leadership and the pressures that can accompany professional progression. Artificial intelligence featured throughout, not only as a technical subject, but also in debates about recruitment, working practices and who gets to shape new tools.
Following her keynote, CERN Chief Information Officer Enrica Porcari captured the positive spirit of the event by arguing that women in STEM should not be described only through the obstacles they face. The summit also made visible the expertise, ambition and momentum already present.
For BE-EA, that message is close to home. Women in the group are essential to the engineering, operations, software and user support on which CERN’s experimental areas depend. Making this work more visible, through presentations, outreach and recruitment, gives prospective applicants a more accurate picture of the group and of the roles they could take on.
- Johannes Bernhard
Melanie Huber with members of the CERN delegation at the Perspektywy Women in Tech Summit 2026 in Warsaw. Credit: Kamil Bieganski/Perspektywy Women in Tech.