By Gokhan Ergocun
ISTANBUL (AA)—The sole purpose of the Turkish National Technology Move is achieving a fully independent, prosperous Türkiye, the head of the country's premier technology event, TEKNOFEST, said on Wednesday.
Selcuk Bayraktar, speaking at the opening ceremony of TEKNOFEST 2025, stressed that high technology is the key to a bright future in every field, from health care to agriculture and transportation to communications.
The five-day event opened its doors in the Turkish metropolis of Istanbul on Wednesday under the organization of the Turkish Technology Team (T3) Foundation and Türkiye’s Industry and Technology Ministry. Anadolu serves as its global communications partner.
Bayraktar said: “At TEKNOFEST, we don't just see brilliant ideas and new inventions. We also see the skilled hands and minds that turn those ideas into steel, code, and products.
"We see tens of thousands of young people who will produce these technologies in factories and develop them in workshops tomorrow."
Every single project in these competitions is a harbinger of the technology companies that will shape tomorrow's world, he added.
He said around 1.1 million people applied for competitions, noting: "This year, we've broadened our horizons even further. With a total of 64 different competitions, 13 of which are new, we're breaking our record as the world's largest technology festival."
- NSosyal
Touching on Türkiye's social media platform NSosyal, he said the TEKNOFEST generation has given its own response to the digital domination; thus, these young people have launched Türkiye's social media platform.
NSosyal is a platform where everyone can freely generate ideas, he said, adding: “NSosyal is a protest against global digital monopolization. NSosyal is where respect, face-to-face politeness, and freedom of expression meet in our digital world.”
He said the TEKNOFEST generation has taken another step forward with the Kure (Globe) Digital Encyclopedia, adding that this step is the result of 1.5 years of meticulous work by the T3 Foundation and KUME Foundation.
Bayraktar emphasized that Kure will be an AI-powered, open-source, reliable reference source where the author of every piece of information is known, adding: “Kure will be a living source of knowledge that you will write and discuss.
"Kure will be the channel of truth against disinformation and manipulation.”
- Babies are slaughtered in Gaza
Bayraktar pointed out that the most ruthless genocide of the modern era is taking place, saying: "Babies, children, innocent people are being slaughtered in Gaza.
"If killing babies is considered legitimate in a place, then there are no longer any moral or legal boundaries there."
He stressed that this situation is an existential threat to all humanity.
Emphasizing that the National Technology Move is not just about making faster rockets and smarter systems, he said: “Our cause is to combine technology with conscience and reason with morality.
"Our cause is to achieve the deterrent power that will say ‘stop’ to this oppression. This power is to ensure moral superiority alongside military, economic, and technological superiority.”