Turkey Unveils Ambitious National Artificial Intelligence Action Plan
At the recent Turkey Artificial Intelligence Summit held in Istanbul, government officials and industry leaders officially announced the nation’s comprehensive Artificial Intelligence action plan. This strategic roadmap outlines Turkey’s vision to become a major player in the global technology arena by focusing on local large language models, massive data center expansions, and robust human capital development. Key figures, including Minister of Industry and Technology Mehmet Fatih Kacır and Baykar Chairman of the Board Selçuk Bayraktar, emphasized the importance of integrating artificial intelligence into the national economy. The initiative aims to foster a sustainable ecosystem that supports both public sector innovation and private entrepreneurship through 2030.
- The government aims to train 10,000 advanced AI experts and 100,000 application professionals within the next two years.
- Turkey plans to increase its data center capacity to at least one gigawatt by 2030 to support digital infrastructure.
- At least 2,000 public sector datasets will be opened to researchers and startups to stimulate local technological development.
- A minimum of 10 billion dollars in investment is projected for cloud and artificial intelligence infrastructure by the private sector.
Strategic Objectives Are Built on Four Main Pillars
The national strategy is structured around four fundamental pillars: recognize, utilize, produce, and manage. By implementing these principles, Turkey intends to accelerate the adoption of advanced technologies across critical sectors such as healthcare, defense, agriculture, and e-commerce. The initiative prioritizes creating a predictable environment for investors while protecting individual user rights through new regulatory frameworks.
A significant budget allocation of at least two percent will be reserved for artificial intelligence projects within public investment programs.
Education Initiatives Target Millions of Citizens
A cornerstone of the action plan involves widespread education to boost digital literacy. The government intends to establish workshops in all 81 provinces, aiming to reach five million people within the next two years. This large-scale training effort seeks to ensure that the workforce remains competitive in an increasingly automated global market.
Local Technologies Drive the Domestic Ecosystem
The development of sovereign artificial intelligence tools remains a primary focus. Projects led by TÜBİTAK, such as the Bilge initiative, alongside large language model developments from the T3 Foundation and Baykar, represent significant milestones in building a Turkish-centric ecosystem. Furthermore, HAVELSAN’s ongoing contributions are expected to play a vital role in enhancing digital sovereignty and cybersecurity.
Turkey is pursuing the development of a joint large language model for Turkic languages in collaboration with the Organization of Turkic States.
Investment Targets Focus on Infrastructure Expansion
The roadmap addresses the critical need for robust hardware and cloud capacity. By encouraging at least 10 billion dollars in private sector investment, the state plans to transform Istanbul into a major regional hub for data and technology. Additionally, small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) will benefit from new “AI voucher” support programs designed to facilitate digital transformation in smart manufacturing and energy sectors.
How do you think these new investments in local language models and infrastructure will impact Turkey’s position in the global tech race? We invite you to share your insights and predictions in the comments section below.
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