Top Turkish officials highlighted on Wednesday the significance of the Take Off Istanbul summit for the entrepreneurship ecosystem, also pointing to the aim of taking domestic startups to the global arena and lauding the appeal of investing in technology, as Türkiye offers various incentives.
Speaking at the opening of the two-day summit, Industry and Technology Minister Mehmet Fatih Kacır emphasized the importance of supporting young entrepreneurs and said that they are making major investments to equip young people with future skills.
He stated that projects like DENEYAP Technology Workshops and the National Technology Expertise Programs are designed to introduce young people to the technologies of the future at an early age and through hands-on experience. He also pointed out that Teknofest, Türkiye's top aviation technology festival, offers millions of young people the chance to design, build and test technology and serves as the launchpad for thousands of innovative ideas.
The Take Off Istanbul summit is organized under the leadership of the Turkish Technology Team Foundation (T3 Foundation), the Industry and Technology Ministry, and the Presidency's Investment and Finance Office.
Starting his speech, Kacır pointed to the significant progress Türkiye has made in different areas since the early 2000s. He cited the increase in its goods exports from $36 billion to $270 billion, improving its manufacturing value added from 21st to 14th place in the world, and becoming a key player in Europe’s value chains in sectors like solar panels, commercial vehicles and white goods.
"We are confident that this momentum in the industry will continue, because we have built a strong R&D and innovation infrastructure during this process. Since the early 2000s, we have increased Türkiye's annual R&D expenditures from $1.2 billion to $20 billion. The share of R&D in our national income has risen from 0.5% to 1.5%," he said.
Moreover, the minister suggested that they have recognized the transformative potential of unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs) "early on," while also citing that the domestically produced electric car Togg has reached more than 80,000 sales in Türkiye and made its first export to Germany.
"Our goal is to multiply such success stories in many areas so that Türkiye can climb even higher in the high-tech ladder. In this journey, our entrepreneurial ecosystem plays a decisive role," he said.
"We see technology entrepreneurship as the main engine of Türkiye's new success stories," he added.
For his part, Investment and Finance Office head Ahmet Burak Dağlıoğlu noted that they were "proud to be a key partner of this event."
"Every year, we organize the Take Off event to bring capital to the entrepreneurial ecosystem. We have another mission as well: to bring Turkish startups to the global stage, the global arena," he stated.
"There are very talented entrepreneurs in Türkiye, and we collaborate to guide them – to match them with the right investment profiles," said Dağlıoğlu, also mentioning the participation in international events.
Dağlıoğlu also noted that they have different concepts for international guests who want to invest or start a business in Türkiye. These include incubation centers, accelerator programs, technoparks and technology hubs.
He also said Türkiye offers various incentives for technology investors, suggesting, for example, that "if you start your business in a technopark or a technology development zone, you are exempt from corporate tax."
"Secondly, when you make a successful exit, you don’t have to pay capital gains tax. I believe this makes Türkiye one of the best places in the region and maybe the world, to start a company," he noted.
Take Off was held for the first time in 2018 as part of Teknofest before it grew and became a separate event.
This year's summit is hosting around 250 investors and 500 startups from more than 40 countries, according to organizers. For the first time, it is welcoming pavilions from countries such as Spain, Bangladesh, North Macedonia and Uzbekistan, showcasing startups from their respective ecosystems.
