Editor's note: This article has been reviewed and updated for accuracy in 2026. Women have become a driving force for the growing cannabis industry. According to the survey conducted by Marijuana Business Daily, 36 percent of the women are leading the cannabis industry as compared to 22 percent in the US as an average across industries. This would seem to indicate that cannabis is relatively more gender balanced than other sectors. There is only 1 Inc. 500 company that was founded by a woman and other titans of tech companies such as Google, Twitter, have relatively fewer women in executive positions compared to the cannabis industry. If trends continue, cannabis could stand out as a shining example of a large growing industry in which women take a dominant role in leadership positions. Cannabis may have been portrayed as more of a boys trouble-making hobby in the past or a guys-only stoner culture but recent trends leads us to believe the industry is shifting away from the dingy basement bro vibe and more into the bright, transparent, women-led professional vibe. So it would seem that today, cannabis is no longer an entirely male-dominated industry. A new report from the women-led firm Vangst revealed some interesting statistics. Vangst found that 38.5 percent are females after surveying 166 cannabis companies across 17 states of the US. The survey also showed that 17.6 percent of women were in the management or executive role. The industry has grown by leaps and bounds in recent