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Born and raised in the United States to a British father and a Malaysian mother, Atkin has competed for Great Britain her entire career and made an Olympic debut four years ago.
With her sister and family watching on at Livigno Snow Park, she put in an assured performance to start her Olympic campaign, impressing the judges with the height of her tricks above the 6.7m-high pipe.
Canada's Cassie Sharpe, the 2018 Olympic champion and 2022 silver medallist, qualified third after her first run, but was taken away on a stretcher after a heavy crash on her second.
By qualifying top, Atkin will drop last into Saturday's final (18:30 GMT) in the best-of-three runs contest.
"It is nerve-wracking, but it is also nice as you get to see what everyone is doing, so you can strategise a little bit," she added.
"It gives me confidence to know the judges like my skiing, and they're hyped to see what I bring to the finals. I am confident and feeling excited.
"The pipe is amazing. It is definitely a steep pitch, so it allows for a lot of speed, which is kind of one of my things to go big."
Heavy snow fell on Livigno throughout Thursday, causing the men's halfpipe qualifiers to be postponed.
They will now take place on Friday morning from 09:30 GMT, with Gus Kenworthy and Liam Richards competing for Great Britain.
