Hi there!

My name is Isha, and I am an expert researcher with experience spanning academia, policy, advocacy, organizing, and industry. My research work examines how new forms of digital labour are transforming the present and future of work, especially for women workers in the Global South.

I use a range of (qualitative, quantitative, and participatory) methodologies to investigate fundamental research questions, provide high-quality empirical findings, analyze policy developments, offer community-centered support, and conduct user research for products and services. I take a people-centered approach in my work, and my strong interdisciplinary background lets me apply ideas and insights from a variety of fields to solve problems.

I hold a postdoc in Communication from Stanford University, a PhD in Sociology from UC Irvine, and an Integrated MA in Development Studies from IIT Madras. My dissertation project examined the gender dynamics of platform work through an ethnography of gig workers and platform managers in the care work sector in Mumbai. I identified new forms of gendered algorithmic management, traced how algorithmized recruitment systems gamify women’s access to work, and showed what happens to work when platforms bring socially reproductive labour into the market. Since 2022, I have also been supporting women’s gig unions and collectives as a volunteer.

Previously, I have worked at Google as a UX Research Intern with the Fitbit team, and for UNICEF and UN Women on tech and development policy consultancy projects. My past projects have focused on adolescent reproductive healthcare, adolescents' mobile phone subcultures, multi-dimensional approaches to poverty, and family-level cognitive burdens of incarceration. I have worked on these and other projects with a variety of collaborators and teams across South Asia, UK, USA, and Sub-Saharan Africa. You can check out some of my projects here.

At the moment, I’m writing about participatory frameworks for algorithmic accountability, histories of women’s work in India, and new forms of human-algorithmic management in beauty platforms. I’m also one of the facilitators of the Labor Tech Research Network - India Collective.

Affiliation: I am currently developing a new project that will examine upcoming AI infrastructures along India’s coastline between 2026-30 - if your organization or department can host me as an affiliate researcher, please write to me at b.isha.ravi at gmail.com.

Consulting: I am available for consulting with civil society, government, and industry groups at the intersection of gender, technology, and work. This can take several forms, such as conducting landscape reviews of key topics, developing resources and workshops, and guiding messaging strategies.

Writing and speaking: I enjoy sharing my research work through public-facing writing and speaking, and welcome collaborations and invitations, particularly for essays and think-pieces.

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