The Career Summit, organized to share the experience and knowledge of leading and expert figures from the telecommunications, defense industry, and e-commerce sectors, brought together important names. The opening of the two-day summit was made by Dr. Ömer Fatih Sayan, Deputy Minister of the Ministry of Transport and Infrastructure. Deputy Minister Sayan stated, “Turkey is now a country that primarily produces software, exports it, and generates export revenue from it, with a growth rate accelerating day by day in the information and communication technologies sector.” Sayan said, “In terms of software, we are raising our targets day by day, developing ourselves further, and working with all our might to reach the top league.”
Deputy Minister Sayan: BTK Academy is Our Source of Pride
Speaking about the “BTK Academy,” which provides free training to a large number of young people on coding, programming, and software both face-to-face at our main campus and online for those who cannot access these trainings, Sayan said, “Today, we take pride in the fact that the BTK Academy, which we pioneered with great excitement and enthusiasm in 2017 and which conducts important activities for interactive sharing of knowledge and experience with all sector stakeholders, has reached over one million users.”
Deputy Minister Sayan: Artificial Intelligence Software Has Reached Exciting Dimensions
Sayan also drew attention to Artificial Intelligence, stating, “Although software in general is a very exciting and high value-added field, artificial intelligence software has recently become a quite popular and curiosity-arousing topic,” and shared current examples on the subject.
Deputy Minister Sayan: E-Commerce is Among the Sectors Where Artificial Intelligence is Most Actively Used
Noting that Turkey's e-commerce volume in the first six months of the year reached 348 billion TL with a 116% increase compared to the same period of the previous year, Sayan said, referring to the “We Are Social & Hootsuite Global Report,” “Turkey ranks 6th in the world among countries that shop the most online, and 4th among countries that conduct the most research online about a product before purchasing it. In other words, we love shopping online and do extensive research about what we will buy.”
Deputy Minister Sayan: We Must Be Inquisitive When Sharing Our Personal Information
Cybersecurity was also on Deputy Minister Sayan's agenda. Emphasizing that cybersecurity plays an important role in all kinds of commercial activities and holds a separate importance for the e-commerce sector, Sayan warned, “Especially against security threats such as financial fraud, phishing, bot attacks, etc., it is very important for e-commerce companies to take precautions, but also for us users to be alert and conscious; particularly, we need to be inquisitive when sharing our personal information during the e-commerce process.”
President Karagözoğlu: We Must Act with the Consciousness of Domestic and National Production
Ömer Abdullah Karagözoğlu, President of the Information Technologies and Communication Authority, also made a speech emphasizing the activities of BTK Academy. Karagözoğlu said, “Under the Turkey Century vision, we continue our efforts to equip our youth with many skills, especially software and coding, on their way to achieving their dreams through BTK Summer Camps and Software Camps, in order to prepare them for the digital world of the future.”
Stating that he firmly believes we will make a generational leap in technology and economy as a result of these investments in our young population, which is the greatest resource for our country's future, Karagözoğlu said, “One of the most important points in achieving our goals is to be domestic and national. Only in this way can we produce everything with our own resources and ensure the continuation of our independence. For this reason, I call on the youth to act with the consciousness of domestic and national production.”
Informing that they continue to fight against many issues such as security breaches, violations of personal rights and freedoms, privacy problems, Karagözoğlu said, “With the ‘Safe Internet Service’ initiated by our institution in 2011, we have provided citizens with a public service aimed at protecting children, youth, and families from many harmful contents in the internet world. Thanks to this completely free service, we both protect our youth from the harms of the internet and give our families a sigh of relief. Because our youth and their becoming virtuous individuals are more precious to us than anything else.”
President Karagözoğlu: Never Lose Your Excitement
Stating that the period we live in is in constant change and development, Karagözoğlu said, “Avoid falling into a routine in your career journey. Continuously trying to push your limits and not fearing these experiences will open the doors you want and dream of. On this path, never fear trying, making mistakes, and failing. Do not lose your excitement by getting stuck on obstacles on the way to success,” offering advice to young people at the beginning of their careers.
At the end of the opening speeches, awards were given to the rights holders in the categories determined by BTK Academy. The event, which brings together important representatives of the Telecommunications, Defense, and E-Commerce sectors, will continue for 2 days.