If you have an interest in advanced innovation, make sure that you are following the careers of these eight inspiring women.
During the month of February, SiliconRepublic.com is paying particular attention to the topics of AI, robotics and automation. As part of that coverage, we have curated a list of some of the most influential, aspirational and creative women in these sectors, so you know who to follow as you navigate your own career.
Clionadh Martin
Clionadh Martin established Coalescent Mobile Robotics, a high-tech platform developed to address challenges in the retail industry. She is currently the head of robotics at Template Systems, is a robotics go-to-market strategy consultant for Clio Consulting and has volunteered for High5Girls, hosting robotics workshops for young girls aged between 13 and 16.
She has been the recipient of a number of awards and honours in recognition of her contributions to the tech field, including Entrepreneur of the Year at the Nordic Women in Tech awards.
Enrika Moore
The co-founder and chief operating officer of Cork-based machine vision and robotics company Viska Systems and a winner of Network Ireland’s STEM Professional of the Year Award, Enrika Moore is fast making a name for herself in the area of robotics and AI.
Her organisation leverages innovation in machine learning (ML), AI, deep learning and robotics, developing products to address the complex challenges that can present across a range of industries, such as in the medical devices, automotive manufacturing, semiconductors, and food and beverage spaces.
India and Portia Healy O’Connor
Sisters India and Portia Healy O’Connor recently announced that their health-tech start-up has raised €2.6m in pre-seed investment in order to scale its agentic AI platform catering to dental practices. The sisters founded the business, Linda AI, to address the issues of lost bookings and wasted capacity.
Having previously worked for investment bank Goldman Sachs, this is the third start-up developed by the Healy O’Connors.
Xelda, their inaugural business, began as a cashless payments platform and now operates as a developer of pre-accounting automation payments. It is backed by Sequoia Capital and the founders of Irish unicorn Flipdish. Curie, the sisters’ second venture, is an AI transcription programme aimed at the medical sector.
Kateryna Portmann
A senior product manager at the Zurich-based robot manufacturer Anybotics, Kateryna Portmann leads the development of advanced robotics solutions. She has served as a Swiss chapter co-lead for Women in Robotics, teaches robotics and physical AI for the Fast Future Executive, and also lectures for the HWZ University of Applied Sciences in Business Administration Zurich. In 2025, she was recognised by the International Federation of Robotics as one of 10 women shaping the future of the industry.
Rebecca Keenan
Expleo’s Rebecca Keenan is the global head of intelligent automation at the organisation. Her work includes leading digital transformation initiatives, particularly in the areas of AI, automation and data innovation, and she has been instrumental in launching Expleo’s Global AI Centre of Excellence.
She has been recognised for her contributions to the tech industry, winning multiple awards such as AI Leader of the Year at the Business Post’s Leadership Excellence awards, a Tech Leader award at the Diversity in Tech Awards, and the Fidelity WMB Woman in Technology Award.
Before turning 30, she was also featured in the Business Post’s 30 under 30: The Ones to Watch in Irish Tech list three times. She founded a women in technology employee resource group at Expleo and through this group aims to empower women in the industry.
Sabine Hauert
An associate professor of swarm engineering at the University of Bristol in the UK, Sabine Hauert’s research focuses primarily on making swarms for people, from nanorobots used in cancer treatments to larger robots for environmental monitoring or logistics. Swarm engineering is where multiple robots work together as a cohesive unit to achieve tasks that would be difficult or inefficient for a single robotic device to achieve. Prior to joining the university, Hauert engineered swarms of nanoparticles for cancer treatment at MIT.
She is the president and co-founder of Robohub.org, and also the executive trustee of AIhub.org, which are non-profits aiming to connect the robotics and AI communities with the public. A recognised expert in her field, she is frequently invited to discuss topics such as the future of robotics and AI, for example at the European Parliament and at the Royal Society.
Sara Hooker
Sara Hooker, the co-founder of AI platform Adaption, was previously included on a Time Magazine list of the most influential people in AI, and now sits on Kaggle’s ML Advisory Research Board and on the World Economic Forum council on the Future of Artificial Intelligence and Data Frontiers.
An advocate for the democratisation of AI, she previously led Cohere Labs, a research lab that seeks to solve complex machine learning problems, and was also a research scientist at Google Brain, now called Deepmind. Adaption Labs recently secured $50m in funding.
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