China: Opening the world of technology to women.

Overcoming technical biases, the She Code Lab series of programming competitions exclusively for women in China has become a creative arena where gender issues and workplace harassment are addressed through the power of technology.

In a brightly lit room in Shenzhen, tension hung in the air as the countdown clock ticked down to the competition. A group of contestants were testing a simulated scenario on their smart glasses. In the scenario, a male colleague made a sarcastic remark: "I didn't mean to offend. It's just that you women are too sensitive."

Immediately, the words "Gender bias detected: True. Suggested response: Sensitivity is not a weakness, everyone deserves respect" appeared on the screen. Cheers erupted. It wasn't just a correctly executed line of code, but the result of 48 hours of sleepless creativity at She Code Lab , China's first Hackathon series dedicated to women, transforming gender perspectives into digital solutions.

Arena of forgotten perspectives

Hackathons are often dubbed "programming marathons" and are incredibly stressful, where programmers must complete a product from idea to demo in just two days and two nights. In China, according to a 2023 report by Lagou (a reputable online recruitment platform in China, especially in the IT sector), women only account for 26% of new programmers. She Code Lab has created a fair playing field for women to assert their identity.

Delegates and participants attend the She Code Lab hackathon in Shenzhen, Guangdong Province. Photo: She Code Lab

Since the end of 2025, this series of competitions has attracted 161 contestants from over 400 applications in Shanghai, Beijing, and Shenzhen. Peng Jing (23 years old) , a member of the organizing committee, explained the necessity of a specialized competition: "Women make up half the world's population , yet less than half of current products incorporate their perspectives. This competition is a springboard for them to step into the role of creators, rather than just passive consumers."

48 hours to turn a "bad experience" into a real product.

What makes She Code Lab so appealing compared to traditional technology competitions is its overarching theme: focusing on "Technology for Women." Under the competition's time constraints, instead of chasing unrealistic commercial trends, contestants delved into negative personal experiences related to gender, from subtle workplace biases to neglected physical pain, seeking solutions through code.

Liu Mi and her colleagues' "SheSense" smart glasses project is a prime example. Inspired by instances of being belittled for her technical abilities by male colleagues at work, Liu used a 48-hour competition to build a device that helps women identify and respond to harassment or gender-based stereotypes in real time.

Helen He (left) and her team won first prize at the She Code Lab hackathon in Shanghai. Their winning product is a smart pillow designed to alleviate hot flashes in premenopausal women. Photo: She Code Lab

Meanwhile, at the Shanghai end of the competition, Helen He's team (33 years old) chose to tackle the topic of menopause, a market often considered "too niche and too small" by male judges in other competitions. By combining AI and hardware to create an automatic cooling pillow for women experiencing hot flashes, her team proved that women's issues are not small at all; it's a market of 700 million potential users. "Understanding menopause is stigmatized. We wanted to do something so our mothers could sleep soundly every night," Helen He explained after winning first prize.

Overcoming the "glass ceiling" of self-confidence.

Despite being a technology competition, She Code Lab also revealed deep psychological barriers related to gender. The organizers observed at the Beijing event that many contestants were still hesitant to register for the "Engineering and Systems" category, which requires advanced programming skills, and often focused only on the "Ideas" category.

Jiang Xuning , a computer science teacher involved in the organization, commented: "Society assumes women are only good at social skills. This makes contestants feel they need to be perfect to claim to be technically proficient." However, the competitive environment among women fostered empathy and boosted their confidence. In particular, with the support of AI, programming language barriers were reduced, allowing teams to complete their demos at lightning speed.

It's safe to say that She Code Lab is more than just about awarding prizes within 48 hours. The competition's greatest significance lies in creating a community of female tech-savvy individuals. From projects managing premenstrual syndrome (PMS) to applications locating shelters for women experiencing domestic violence, the competition has redefined the concept of "advanced technology."

Technology is only truly powerful when it addresses human pain. And through competitions like She Code Lab, Chinese women are proving that they are not just standing on the sidelines of the digital revolution, but are directly reprogramming the future—a more equitable and empathetic future for half the world's population.

"We are no longer pessimistic," Jiang Xuning concluded. "This competition proves that with just a small group of determined women, we can build incredibly useful things and challenge all prejudices from the outside world."

Source: sixthtone.com

Source: https://phunuvietnam.vn/mo-cua-the-gioi-cong-nghe-cho-phai-nu-23826051311170391.htm