Darya Majidi, expert in Artificial Intelligence, wins the 2025 Casato Prime Donne Award

The Casato Prime Donne Award 2025 (held on September 13 in Montalcino), in the edition dedicated to artificial intelligence, is awarded to Darya Majidi, the artificial intelligence expert who was the first to focus on spreading digital skills among young women to combat the gender gap. in the journalism section, which recognizes the best contributions to the promotion of Montalcino (and which, in the past, has been awarded several times to Winenews, ed.), the winners are Lara Loreti for her article “Brunello di Montalcino: 5 wineries not to be missed” (a portrait of Brunello in which places, stories, and characters are recounted with compelling storytelling) published in “Il Gusto” of “La Repubblica,” and Giorgio Dell’Orefice for two articles that offer readers data on the production and commercial reality of Montalcino wines, chosen and analyzed with expertise, “Tuscany: Rosso di Montalcino production set to double” and “Welcome Brunello in Florida, Texas, and Virginia + 19% in sales”, in the daily newspaper Il Sole 24 Ore (award named after the Brunello Consortium).
The jury of the Casato Prime Donne Award - composed of Donatella Cinelli Colombini, president, Rosy Bindi, Anselma Dell’Olio, Anna Pesenti, Stefania Rossini, Anna Scafuri, and Daniela Viglione - has chosen Darya Majidi as “Prima Donna 2025”. “With her”, states a press release, “a new way of looking at artificial intelligence as a tool for achieving social goals and specifically the growth of women’s prospects is inaugurated. Last month, LinkedIn included Darya among the 200 voices of AI worldwide. There are only four Italians on the list, and she is the only woman. Since 2024, Darya Majidi has been president of the Italian Committee of UN Women, the United Nations entity for women’s empowerment. Her goal is to raise Italy’s current ranking of 85th in the World Economic Forum’s Global Gender Gap Report 2025. Due to the exceptional nature of her contribution, the daily newspaper La Repubblica has included her among the 100 women who are changing the world, and in 2022, Io Donna, part of Corriere della Sera, chose her as one of the 10 women who have the greatest impact in Italy”.
The Casato Prime Donne Award was established in 1999 by Rai journalist Ilda Bartoloni, who redesigned the Barbi Colombini Award created 18 years earlier by Francesca Colombini Cinelli. The heart of the new initiative is the selection of a “Prima Donna”, a personality capable of being an example and inspiration to women on their journey toward gender equality. In its first 25 years, the Casato Prime Donne Award has contributed to the fame of Montalcino by promoting the best articles, radio and television reports, and photographs of the area, its people, and above all, Brunello. After the interruption caused by Covid, the Casato Prime Donne Award has launched a talent incubator aimed at encouraging talented students to inspire the communities in which they live and work. The award is part of a more complex project that includes the Casato Prime Donne winery, the first in Italy with an entirely female staff, and Brunello Prime Donne, chosen by a panel of four international female tasters and dedicated to female wine lovers. Finally, there is the Prime Donne trail through the vineyards and winery of Casato Prime Donne. This is a meditative itinerary featuring dedications from the winners alongside artistic installations.

Focus - The Casato Prime Donne Award: the “Prime Donne” over the years
2025 - Darya Majidi, esperta di Intelligenza Artificiale
2024 - Maria Canabal - Parabere Forum
2022 - Elena Testi - Inviata
2019 - Alessandra Paola Ghisleri - Sondaggista e politologa
2018 - Sara Gama - Calciatrice
2017 - Federica Bertocchini - Biologa molecolare
2016 - Chaimaa Fatihi - Attivista per la pace
2015 - Giuseppina Maria Nicolini - Sindaco di Lampedusa e Linosa
2014 - Sandra Savaglio - Astrofisica
2013 - Linda Laura Sabbadini - Direttore del dipartimento di statistiche sociali e ambientali dell’Istat
2012 - Maria Carmela Lanzetta - Sindaco di Monasterace
2011 - Carla Fendi - Stilista di moda e mecenate della cultura
2010 - Samantha Cristoforetti - Astronauta
2009 - Ilaria Capua - Virologa
2008 - Josefa Idem - Atleta
2007 - Frances Mayes - Scrittrice
2006 - Volontarie del Telefono Rosa
2005 - Congregazione delle Missionarie del S. Cuore di Gesù
2004 - Kerry Kennedy - Attivista dei diritti umani
2003 - Carla Fracci - Étoile della danza
2002 - Marta Morazzoni - Scrittrice
2001 - Paola Capriolo - Scrittrice
2000 - Francesca Sanvitale - Scrittrice