The Wojcicki sisters of Silicon Valley are getting their own Barbie dolls. Mattel, the owner of the Barbie brand, today (March 8) released seven new dolls representing notable women in science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) in celebration of the International Women’s Day. The lineup includes Susan Wojcicki, the longtime YouTube CEO who resigned last month, and her two equally accomplished sisters, Anne and Janet.
Anne Wojcicki is the founder and CEO of 23andME, an at-home DNA testing company. Janet Wojcicki is a professor of pediatrics and epidemiology at the University of California, San Francisco.
“STEM is a field where women are severely underrepresented, and our hope is that honoring these seven leaders in science and technology will encourage girls to follow their passion in this field,” said Lisa McKnight, Mattel’s global head of Barbie & Dolls, in a statement today.
For years, Barbie dolls have been criticized for encouraging materialism and unrealistic body images. The STEM role models are Mattel’s latest effort to change Barbie’s reputation and expand into dolls based on real-life women leaders. Last year, Mattel released a Barbie made after American TV producer Shonda Rhimes. In 2018, it created a Barbie based on then 97-year-old fashion icon Iris Apfel.
“Growing up, I didn’t imagine that I would have a career in tech,” Susan Wojcicki said in a statement. “My sisters and I found jobs we love and discovered how creative and fulfilling careers in STEM can be for women.”
Susan Wojcicki, 54, was Google’s first marketing manager and worked with the tech giant’s cofounders Larry Page and Sergey Brin from her family’s garage in Menlo Park, Calif. in the 1990s. She worked at Google for 25 years, including nine as the CEO of Google-owned YouTube, until resigning in February for personal reasons.
“I understand firsthand that role models are essential for young girls to see what’s possible. When I was starting my career, I struggled to find inspiring stories of other women excelling in STEM – and especially in epidemiology,” Janet Wojcicki, 53, in a statement.
“I want to inspire girls to dream and believe they can pursue any dream they have,” Anne Wojcicki, 49, said in a tweet yesterday (March 7). She also tweeted a photo of the three sisters holding their Barbies.
The Wojcicki sisters are the only women from the U.S. featured in Mattel’s latest Barbie release. The other four women honored in the lineup are:
- Katya Echazarreta, a Mexican electrical engineer and science show host
- Maggie Aderin-Pocock, a British space scientist and science educator
- Antje Boetius, a German marine biologist
- Yinuo Li, a Chinese entrepreneur and the cofounder of ETU Education
