Her Story
About Ricquel
I spent over 20 years in finance and investment banking before transitioning into AI about 5 years ago during the AI boom. The transition happened through an investment club for women that was teaching AI skills right when generative AI and ChatGPT became available to the public. I saw it as a way to upskill and maneuver into other business ventures I had been considering. In my finance career, I had already been working with startups in the AI space before it became a public thing, so I was familiar with the technology being used behind the scenes. Now I work as an independent consultant, and I got involved with She Is AI because, similar to finance, there are not a lot of women in the tech and AI space, and even fewer women of color. As a Black, Afro-Latina woman, I've always advocated for representation throughout my career, even back in college, because I'm normally the only woman in the room and the only Black woman in the room. My work with She Is AI focuses on bringing a face and wider representation to women and underrepresented voices, particularly Black women, brown women, and Indigenous communities. My typical day involves working from home on my computer, often taking calls at unusual hours like 1 o'clock in the morning due to time differences with the Global South, where I'm helping get people up to speed on AI technology. I work on various projects, create workshops and courses, participate in podcasts, and collaborate with others in the AI, fintech, and blockchain spaces to get the voice out there.
Her Interview
Ten minutes with Ricquel
01What do you attribute your success to?
I attribute my success to my resilience, my persistence, and my faith. I've overcome a lot in my life, no matter how blessed I was in my upbringing. There were still a lot of things I had to go through that I overcame, and I always think back on times when I said, 'I don't know how I'm gonna make it through this,' and then when I look back, I realize I made it through that, so I can make it through this. That has always been the layering effect when I look back over my life at the things that a lot of people thought I wouldn't make it through, but I did. I'm not gonna give up. I'm like that phoenix who's rising always out of the ashes better than ever. That's what it is.
02What’s the best career advice you’ve ever received?
The best advice I've ever received is that I'm enough, as I am. That simple truth has carried me through my career and helped me show up authentically in every space I enter.
03What advice would you give to young women entering your industry?
I would say go for it. Always, always go for it and believe in yourself. Try to find your community, but most importantly, show up as your authentic self. If people don't accept you as your authentic self, they're not your people. That's the biggest lesson I learned. I was just having a conversation with a friend about this earlier today who's on Wall Street and we used to work together. Don't feel that you have to change to fit in, because you will find your fit where you're supposed to be. Have resilience, be persistent, but most of all, be authentic, and be genuine, and be kind to yourself and others.
04What are the biggest challenges or opportunities in your field right now?
The biggest challenge in my industry is the lack of representation of women and Black and Brown people specifically. I'm not going to say people of color broadly, because that includes Asian communities, but I'm talking specifically about Black and Brown people and women. The biggest opportunity is that AI is still new, it's still growing, and it's still evolving. That means there's room for us to shape it and be part of its development from the ground up.
05What values are most important to you in your work and personal life?
The values that are most important to me are kindness, integrity, authenticity, transparency, and honesty. I also live by something my dad always told me: always do what you say you're gonna do. Your words carry power. Always do what you say that you're going to do, because if you're not gonna do it, then you can just shut up. I really saw that value modeled when my dad passed away suddenly while I was in college. Over 700 people came to his funeral from all around, and I heard the impact he had on them and what he did for them in their lifetimes. People said he believed in them when they did not believe in themselves, and because of his kindness, they were able to make it out of difficult situations. Carrying that with me throughout life has always pushed me to be kind, because you never, never know what people are dealing with.
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