01.07.2022 Ankara
TOBB is establishing the Turkish Startup Platform with the support of Google.org. TOBB President Hisarcıklıoğlu, while giving the example of the caterpillar needing a cocoon while turning into a butterfly, emphasized that this platform will serve as a 'cocoon' as startups turn into large enterprises. Google Turkey Country Director Keteloğlu pointed out that startups coming out of Turkey attract great attention in the world.
The Union of Chambers
and Commodity Exchanges of Turkey (TOBB), with the support of Google.org, is
launching the Turkish Startup Platform, which will strengthen the startup
ecosystem of Turkey and gather Turkey's “startup power” under a single roof.
The platform will
register startups operating in Turkey, monitor their development and increase
their visibility, bringing them together with investors and customers.
The platform will be
accessed through an internet application; startups will be able to declare
their teams, exhibit their products and services, and meet the investment,
customer, training and mentoring services they need for commercialization and
growth from the services to be offered under the platform roof.
- Hisarcıklıoğlu: “We
will turn the Anatolian geography into the center of new ideas”
TOBB President M. Rifat
Hisarcıklıoğlu said in his evaluation of the subject, “As we approach the 100th
anniversary of our Republic, we have started a new project to make this land a
center for technology-oriented entrepreneurs. We will register our country's
startups, monitor their development and be with them when they need support.
Just as a caterpillar needs a cocoon when it turns into a butterfly, this
platform will be their cocoon as startups transform into big businesses. We
will take each idea into a separate cocoon, prepare them for commercial life in
this cocoon, and then leave the nest and wish that each of them will turn into
giant enterprises. We will implement new ideas and commercialize them and
create new sources of wealth and employment areas together. With the Turkey
Startup Platform, we will further strengthen the entrepreneurship ecosystem in
our country. I expect all organizations, initiatives and experts operating in
the field of startups to contribute to this project and to participate
effectively.”
- Investors and large-scale
companies will also take part in the platform
Stating that investors
have a very important share in the realization of ideas in today's world,
Hisarcıklıoğlu said, “In this project, important services will be provided to
portfolio management, venture capital and investment companies, funds,
financial institutions and large enterprises. Turkey Startup Platform, which
will be the meeting point of the startup ecosystem, will be opened to the use
of all parties in January 2023.”
- Keteloğlu: “The human
resources of the future will be fed by innovation and entrepreneurship”
Google Turkey Country
Director Mehmet Keteloğlu said that the number of technology and
innovation-oriented initiatives is increasing day by day thanks to the young
population and entrepreneurship culture of the country, “Our country has a
great potential in this field. Startups coming out of Turkey are also visible
in the world and receive investments. 9 percent of the downloaded games in the
world belong to the companies that produce games in Turkey.”
Keteloğlu included the
following opinions in his assessment: “We are happy to be making an important
contribution to this ecosystem under the leadership of the Union of Chambers
and Commodity Exchanges of Turkey. We provided 500,000 dollars in resource
support through Google.org for the realization of the Turkey Startup Platform,
which will cover all actors of technology entrepreneurship. Turkey Startup
Platform, which has been implemented in order to provide training and mentoring
support to technology and innovation-oriented initiatives in our country and to
bring these initiatives together with investors and industrialists, will be an
important facilitator in this field.”
Referring to Google's
contributions to the startup ecosystem in Turkey during the more than 15 years
it has been operating in Turkey, Keteloğlu stated that they have signed many
important projects together with their business partners in public and civil
society in terms of adaptation of individuals, especially young people, to
technology products and services. Keteloğlu explained Google's perspective on
entrepreneurship with the following sentences: “We are aware that if startups
are supported in Turkey, they will achieve great success. As Google Turkey,
with this perspective, we always support startups and ideas to reach their
potential and to sign international success stories. With the support of
Google, we lead entrepreneurs who create their own success stories to grow and
go global with Google services and tools. We prepare young people and startups
for the digital world and continue to work for our country's digital economy to
compete with global markets.”
- Policy
recommendations and action plan will be prepared in the first leg of the
project
In the first part of
the project, the training and mentoring needs of the startups will be
determined and the obstacles to the development of the startups will be
identified by coming together with the stakeholders in the ecosystem. Policy
recommendations and action plans that will remove obstacles in front of
startups and support startups will be created and shared with public
institutions. Following the action plan, the platform will be made available to
startups in January 2023.
- The meeting point of
the Turkish startup ecosystem
Startups will be able
to meet the many opportunities they need through the platform, including
investors, customers, technical teams, innovation and acceleration programs,
and training and mentoring services. Startups will also be able to communicate
and exchange ideas with each other with the metaverse meeting point to be
created under the roof of the platform. In addition, the project plans to
create a startup community with next-generation community management tools.