GITEX Ai Türkiye will link global capital to Türkiye's AI startups

GITEX Ai Türkiye will debut in Istanbul on Sept. 9-10, 2026, as a new gathering point for investors, technoparks and AI startups across Eurasia. Organizers and speakers say Türkiye’s engineering depth, industrial base and growing startup funding make it a strong launchpad for globally scalable AI companies.

Why it matters: - GITEX Ai Türkiye is designed to connect global capital with Türkiye’s AI startup pipeline in Istanbul. - Speakers say the event could help turn Türkiye’s industrial strengths into globally competitive AI businesses. - Investors at the event will be looking at sectors such as industrial AI, fintech, defence tech, mobility, energy tech and enterprise software.

What happened: - GITEX Ai Türkiye will debut on Sept. 9-10, 2026, at Istanbul Expo Centre. - The event is positioned as Eurasia’s most global tech and AI investment event. - Erhan AK, CFO at Fark Holding, was a headline speaker ahead of the launch. - AK said international investors should focus on sectors where Türkiye combines engineering talent with industrial depth. - AK said startups that can scale across Europe, the Middle East and Central Asia are especially attractive. - GITEX Ai Türkiye will feature more than 300 exhibitors, including Trendyol, Türkiye’s $16.5 billion e-commerce company. - Turkish startups raised $559 million in the first quarter of 2026, more than seven times the same period a year earlier. - Türkiye has produced eight tech unicorns so far.

The details: - AK will speak on a panel titled “Next growth engines – emerging industries that could define Türkiye’s digital decade.” - Fark Holding’s Fark Labs innovation arm is one of the more active industrial investors in Turkish AI ventures. - AK said Fark Labs teams in the USA, Netherlands, Finland and Portugal are helping local startups scale globally. - AK said GITEX Ai Türkiye can connect capital, talent and industry in one place. - YTÜ Yıldız Technopark will attend with 750 companies, more than 14,000 R&D staff, 70 AI-focused companies and 341 active AI projects. - YTÜ Yıldız Technopark will showcase its Starboard AI platform and Techno-Scouting module, which scores portfolio companies against more than 60 parameters. - Medeniyet Technopark’s TeknoKöprü Investment Acceleration Programme combines training with direct investor meetings. - Medeniyet Technopark has run delegation programs to the UK, Qatar, the UAE, Malaysia, Singapore and Morocco. - Antalya Teknokent said the event’s value lies in concentrating startups, investors, corporations, public institutions and technology leaders on one platform. - Giresun Teknopark said the event gives startups outside Türkiye’s largest cities direct access to international markets, investors and partnerships. - GITEX Ai Türkiye is hosted by the Investment and Finance Office of the Presidency of the Republic of Türkiye (Invest in Türkiye) in strategic partnership with Türkiye’s Ministry of Industry and Technology. - The event is powered by GITEX and organised by inD, the joint venture between Dubai World Trade Centre and Informa. - Tech participants include Google Cloud, HPE & NVIDIA, ASUS, Huawei, Dell Technologies, SAP and TrendAI. - Other regional participants include Trendyol, Andevos and Halkbank.

Between the lines: - The message from speakers is that Türkiye’s AI opportunity is not just consumer apps. - The bigger bet is AI applied to industries where Türkiye already has engineering depth and manufacturing strength. - That framing could make the event more attractive to investors looking for practical commercial use cases rather than pure AI experimentation. - The emphasis on technoparks suggests Türkiye wants to present a more organized, investable startup funnel to foreign capital.

What's next: - GITEX Ai Türkiye will bring together more than 100 investors from 20 nations managing US$50 billion in assets. - Those investors will meet Türkiye’s technopark-incubated startups in Istanbul next month. - Organizers expect the event to lead to new investments, commercial partnerships and globally scalable companies. - Speakers say the next stage is building AI companies that can compete internationally from day one.

The bottom line: - GITEX Ai Türkiye is being launched as a capital-meets-talent platform for Türkiye’s AI economy, with a clear pitch: the country can build the next generation of global tech companies from an industrial base already built for scale.