Türkiye is increasing investment in artificial intelligence talent, with the defense sector at the forefront

German engineering and technology group Siemens hosted a major artificial intelligence summit this week, providing a platform to explore the evolving landscape of industrial AI solutions aimed at improving industrial processes.

The AI ​​with Purpose Summit brought together research and development leaders, regulatory and security experts, and HR professionals to discuss related issues.

While security and regulatory concerns raise concerns about the adoption of generative AI technology, companies clearly continue to invest in its potential.

Siemens, which employs 1,500 AI experts, uses industrial AI technology to develop solutions tailored to a variety of sectors, from manufacturing to healthcare.

The event also highlighted the intensifying competition in recruiting AI talent. Representatives from Siemens’ artificial intelligence research and development department addressed questions regarding regulatory and security issues as well as human resources policy.

Türkiye and Aselsan

In his keynote on the “AI Talent Distribution Report” at the summit, Tom Hurd, co-founder and CEO of Zeki Research, noted that the AI ​​talent landscape, traditionally dominated by the United States, has undergone significant changes over the past year.

“National leaders have played a key role in driving the AI ​​transformation by successfully retaining talent and intellectual property within their borders,” Hurd said. He noted that while large enterprises account for 60% of the AI ​​talent market, the dominance of the largest U.S. technology companies has waned and now accounts for just 11.4%.

Companies such as Google DeepMind, Siemens, Nokia, Philips, Ericsson, Samsung Electronics and Tata Consultancy Services have become leading recruiters of top artificial intelligence talent outside the United States, indicating a significant shift in the global talent landscape, Hurd said.

He noted, for example, that Türkiye is clearly increasing investment in artificial intelligence talent in its defense sector. He emphasized that the pioneer of the defense industry, Aselsan, stands out for its noteworthy investments in artificial intelligence.

“AI talent is attracting interest from many places and employers across Europe. We firmly believe that artificial intelligence will not replace human intelligence, but will complement it.”

Industrial solutions everywhere

Siemens’ third annual AI Summit brought together more than 500 participants, including enterprise customers, startups and journalists, to explore AI solutions through theoretical and practical demonstrations. Siemens representatives described the event’s goal as “bringing artificial intelligence to a state of readiness and reliability in industrial applications.”

Specific examples of industrial applications include Siemens Industrial Copilot, co-developed with Microsoft.

Copilot for Industrial Operations is an example of the successful integration of mature OpenAI and Copilot technologies, effectively preparing artificial intelligence for implementation on the production line.

This Copilot facilitates interaction between operators and maintenance staff and machines by leveraging data from existing documentation (such as employee manuals) along with process and sensor data acquired via the Internet of Things (IoT) and edge devices.

Industrial Copilot solutions are expected to be implemented this summer. Siemens representatives emphasized that they are focused on using the Industrial Copilot solution across the entire value chain, including design, planning, engineering, operations and service functions.

Embracing the AI ​​Storm

While the OpenAI ChatGPT and Google Gemini demos may have captivated viewers with glimpses of a fantastic future, corporations remain cautious and need time to build trust in these technologies.

However, Apple reaffirms its commitment to pioneering secure AI. They claim to address security at all levels from chip development to private cloud solutions.

The question remains: Will generative AI evolve into industrial AI, eventually finding a home in enterprise data centers?

Companies will have the opportunity to delve into the various stages and applications of AI, including data preparation, determining appropriate scale, ensuring regulatory compliance, implementing robust security protocols and isolating digital twins.

Scalability challenges

One thing is clear: industrial AI is shaping the future of manufacturing efficiency. It is also clear that anyone entering this complex terrain will face challenges. Despite progress in the development of AI technology lines and their clearly good performance, numerous proof-of-concept initiatives fail to progress beyond the initial stage and never reach production.

One of the primary levers for strengthening AI will always depend on data quality and quantity. Artificial intelligence is not better than the data it is trained on. This is especially true for industrial AI.

The imperatives of industrial artificial intelligence

Have you started your adventure with industrial artificial intelligence? Have you identified its potential? However, do you encounter difficulties in implementing it for productive use on a large scale? The stark contrast between real-world experiences gleaned from company data and the refined demonstrations presented at events underscores the critical role of field experiences.

To address these challenges, expert support is paramount when establishing a comprehensive framework. This framework should enable seamless deployment, operation and monitoring of AI solutions at the field level, eliminating the need for specialized data analytics expertise.

While demand remains high, widespread adoption and the value-creating potential of industrial AI solutions are often hampered by a lack of infrastructure and processes to ensure reliability, security and scalability.

Building on a faulty foundation carries significant risk. A significant shortcoming is the lack of a seamlessly integrated solution for monitoring and re-skilling AI solutions in operational technology (OT) environments. Additionally, custom AI software solutions may not meet stringent enterprise security requirements. State-of-the-art data and IT security measures are essential. The framework should provide a standardized infrastructure to facilitate the deployment and scalability of AI solutions, ensuring service delivery and process compliance.

Robolaunch secures $1.5 million investment

Robolaunch, a cloud-based software development and deployment platform for artificial intelligence and robotics applications, has raised $1.5 million in an investment round led by Simya VC, an international accelerator fund focused on early-stage startups.

Robolaunch plans to use the investment to further develop its robotic solutions, expand its sales activities, increase customer acquisition and revenues, and enter European and American markets.

Simya VC was founded by 212, Turkey’s first venture capital fund, to further support startups on their growth path by focusing on early-stage investments.

The investment round also included Driventure, the first venture capital company in the Turkish automotive industry founded by Ford Otosan, and INVEST101, a venture capital fund established in cooperation with Türkiye Development Fund and Middle East Technical University (METU) Teknokent.

Robolaunch’s cloud-based software development and deployment platform is specifically designed for artificial intelligence, machine learning, and robotics applications. By offering scalable solutions, it enables easier application implementation at lower costs compared to traditional methods.

Expansion to the USA and Europe

“Thanks to the investment received, we plan primarily to develop our sales team, organize goal-oriented marketing campaigns and increase our visibility by participating in international fairs in the field of artificial intelligence and robotics. Our efforts to integrate Robolaunch into the industry, especially in manufacturing and smart city applications, will open the door to new and promising collaborations through this investment,” said Hidayet Gürcan Tunç, founding partner of Robolaunch.

Stressing that they want to continue to expand beyond the Turkish market, Tunç continued: “With this strategy, we intend to expand our customer base and strengthen our global presence by gaining access to new markets. We give priority to entering the European and American markets. on the other hand, we will also invest in our R&D activities, developing our industrial cloud platform and robotic solutions. In this way, we want to provide our customers with excellent service by improving the performance and comfort of use of our products.

Supporting the development path of startups

Selma Bahçıvanoğlu, managing partner of Simya VC, said that the company has been investing in advanced technologies since its inception that promise to shape the future.

“This investment of ours is also fully consistent with our investment strategy. Robolaunch technology is truly amazing. The company’s current customer base is a significant testament to the strength of this technology across industries,” Bahçıvanoğlu said.

“We will play an important role in expanding Robolaunch’s customer reach and market penetration not only by supporting them financially, but also by supporting the Simya and 212 networks on their growth path. As Simya VC, we will continue to support domestic start-ups that create innovative solutions.”

Türk Telekom, Rönesans Holding join forces in digitalization

Türk Telekom, one of Turkey’s leading telecommunications and technology companies, has signed a goodwill agreement with Rönesans Holding to cooperate on data center, smart highway and regional product and service delivery projects.

The partnership will cover the Türk Telekom data center project, which is planned to be implemented in the capital Ankara. The two will also work on the Nakkaş-Başakşehir highway project. This will include work on intelligent transport systems, toll collection systems, design, implementation and operation of electromechanical processes.

“With our leading approach to Turkey’s digital transformation, we reflect our technological expertise in all areas of life. We are pioneers of digitalization in many different fields, from defense to industry, from finance to energy, from education to health, from transport to agriculture, from art to sports,” said Türk Telekom CEO Ümit Önal.

“Thanks to our technology expertise, we are digitizing highways, bridges, cities and areas of our cultural and spiritual heritage that reflect our history from beginning to end. We undertake pioneering projects that will lead our country into the future. “are carrying out work that will contribute to Turkey’s vision of becoming a technology producing and exporting country.”

Rönesans Holding CEO Erman Ilıcak said that strategic partnerships and partnerships with a long tradition are very important for the company in bringing projects to life.

“We believe that the agreement we have concluded with Türk Telekom is one of the most important indicators of our “partnership” culture, will set an example for our industry and will ensure the implementation of many important projects.”

The agreement is also intended to pave the way for joint work on data centers, smart highways, energy production and projects abroad, especially in the Turkish republics.