Union of Chambers and Commodity Exchanges of Turkey

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 100^th 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.