Türkiye unveils 15 candidates as potential new billion-dollar ventures
Türkiye’s Global Competitiveness Program consists of ventures that will exponentially increase exports by utilizing next-generation technologies, with 15 different startups unveiled as candidates to alter the ranking of the country’s most valuable companies
IN Türkiye and around the world, the stars of the digital world have irreversibly changed after the coronavirus pandemic. In 2020, Türkiye got its first billion-dollar startups, altering the rankings of its most valuable companies and devising global competitive strategies in response to changing economic conditions driven by artificial intelligence, cloud technologies and data economics.
Speaking in Istanbul during the Turcorn Candidates Introduction Meeting, Industry and Technology Minister Mehmet Fatih Kacır said the government would provide TL 50 million ($1.56 million) in financing support to startups boasting a potential to become new billion-dollar worth ventures through the Global Competitiveness Program.
The event saw the announcement of 15 entrepreneurial ventures as potential Turcorns, a term Türkiye uses to describe Turkish unicorns.
TÜRKİYE’S GARAGE MODEL
Kacır issued a call to technology-based ventures within the entrepreneurial ecosystem and stressed the government would continue “to offer contributions and mobilize our resources for you and your success.”
Emphasizing the pivotal role of technology entrepreneurship in crafting new success stories in the economy, Kacır remarked: “We have increased the number of our technoparks from 2 to 101, raising the count of research and development (R&D) and innovation ventures in our technoparks from 56 to over 10,000. Through the TÜBİTAK Bigg program, we have facilitated the establishment of 2,293 technology ventures.”
Through Teknofest, Türkiye’s biggest technology and aerospace festival, the minister said they have steered millions of young individuals toward the path of technology development.
“Teknofest, which has transformed into a veritable venture factory, now gives birth
to thousands of technology ventures annually. This is the unique ‘garage model’ of Türkiye. Compared to the dynamics of other countries’ entrepreneurial ecosystems, we are collectively constructing a more equitable and democratic model within the Turkish entrepreneurial ecosystem,” he noted.
GOAL OF 100,000 TECH STARTUPS
Kacır reiterated that fostering more technology ventures and enabling thousands of young entrepreneurs to turn their dreams into projects, and projects into ventures is one of their primary objectives.
“In our National Entrepreneurship Strategy, we have set a goal of 100,000 tech startups by 2030. We will ensure the birth of thousands of new technology ventures from Türkiye each year, constructing a vast entrepreneurial ecosystem with 100,000 tech startups. A complementary aspect of this goal is to foster technology ventures from Türkiye that surpass a billion-dollar
valuation,” the official said.
“Technology ventures exceeding a billiondollar valuation, referred to as ‘unicorns’ in the entrepreneurship literature, are also considered indicators of an entrepreneurial ecosystem’s competitiveness. Thus far, seven Turcorns have surpassed the billion-dollar valuation mark, spanning gaming, software, e-commerce and fintech ventures. The fact that six out of these seven Turcorns have reached this milestone with the support and contributions of our ministry underscores that we are on the right track.”
TURCORN CANDIDATES
The first 15 technology ventures selected for the Turcorn 100 Program have been identified, spanning various sectors from artificial intelligence, digital service technologies, cybersecurity, health care technologies and green transformation to financial technologies.
These include ACE Games developing mobile games, Albert Health Services focusing on chronic disease management, Appsamurai providing mobile application analysis and dissemination tools, ICT Buluş Bilişim (Bulutistan) offering cloud computing services, Colendi Artificial Intelligence and Big Data Technology Services as a financial services platform, Enqura Information Technologies enhancing digital customer experience, Fazla Gıda providing solutions to reduce food waste, Macellan Information Consulting as a venture studio, AVCR Information Technologies (Pixery) working on video and photo technologies, Picus Science Security developing cybersecurity solutions, RS Research focusing on cancer treatment, TechSign Information Technologies offering digital identity authentication solutions, Vispera Information Technologies developing image processing technologies in retail, VRlab Academy providing virtual reality solutions in education, and Wask Information Technologies delivering digital ad management.