When the world shut down in 2020, Gina Romero, founder of Mettamatch, saw more than just a crisis—she saw a rare opportunity to drive meaningful change. As companies scrambled to adapt to remote work and artificial intelligence rapidly transformed the way we live and work, Gina launched a movement that’s now helping thousands of women break into the future of tech.
“It was 2020, at the height of the pandemic, when everything changed,” Gina told Financial Adviser PH. “Remote work wasn’t just a future trend anymore—it had become a necessity.”
At the same time, artificial intelligence was advancing fast—and it needed people. Behind every smart AI system is a massive volume of data that must be sorted, labeled, and reviewed. “The industry had gained some bad press,” Gina said. “Many of the people doing the work behind the scenes—the data work that powers AI—were often underpaid, unprotected, and unrecognised. We wanted to change that.”
That realization led to the creation of Elevate AIDA—short for Artificial Intelligence Data Annotation—a training and employment program specifically designed to upskill women, many of whom had never worked in tech. “It started with a bold idea: what if we could take women, many of whom had never worked in tech before, and train them to contribute to some of the most cutting-edge projects in AI?”
With no large funding rounds or flashy infrastructure, Gina and her team built the program from the ground up. They combined hands-on learning, real client projects, and a strong support system. They partnered with companies that embraced ethical sourcing, and worked with government and private sector allies who believed in the mission.
“We proved that, with the right training and systems in place, women from all backgrounds could deliver high-quality work—often better than more experienced teams,” she said.
Elevate AIDA didn’t just address a short-term problem—it laid the groundwork for Mettamatch, the ethical data services company Gina founded to scale the model. Through Mettamatch, Gina is building a future where inclusion is part of the infrastructure of AI.
Still, getting there wasn’t easy. “One of the biggest challenges was being taken seriously,” Gina recalled. “We were talking about AI and highly technical work—but also about stay-at-home mums and women from rural communities. That didn’t fit the usual startup narrative.”
Financing was another hurdle. “We didn’t start with a big investment. Most of what we did was self-funded or supported by early angel investors. We had to be scrappy and creative.”
Most of the women trained through Elevate AIDA had never done remote work. “We were asking them to do something completely unfamiliar, in a way that had never been done,” Gina explained. That’s why her approach focused on education, support, and designing a business model around women’s needs.
As women started earning income and gaining confidence, trust grew—and so did demand. “Our clients started asking, ‘How are you finding such exceptional people?’” she said. “Our answer? This isn’t just a job to them—it’s a second chance.”
Today, Mettamatch is a growing force in the AI services industry, and Elevate AIDA continues to create new pathways for women in tech. “Our business model has changed, but our mission hasn’t,” Gina said. “Bringing opportunities home is still our north star.”
With Mettamatch, Gina Romero isn’t just creating jobs—she’s helping redefine who gets to participate in the future of technology.
