Dr. Ömer Fatih Sayan, Chairman of the Information Technologies and Communication Authority, spoke at the Technology Summit organized by Turkcell. Sayan touched upon the importance of technology that is enveloping the world at a dizzying speed and made statements on how its harmful aspects should be eliminated.
The 9th Technology Summit organized by Turkcell was held at the Haliç Congress Center in Istanbul. This year's summit, held under the slogan "Turkey.Today.Now," was attended by names such as Minister of Transport, Maritime Affairs and Communications Ahmet Arslan, Minister of Science, Industry and Technology Faruk Özlü, Dr. Ömer Fatih Sayan, Chairman of the Information Technologies and Communication Authority, Turkcell General Manager Kaan Terzioğlu, as well as Professor Stuart J. Russell, one of the world's leading figures in artificial intelligence, GSMA Director General Mats Granryd, IBM Watson and Cloud Platform Portfolio Vice President Rob High, and TBWA Global Creative and Content Director Theodor Arhio.
Dr. Ömer Fatih Sayan, Chairman of the Information Technologies and Communication Authority, who made the opening speech, said that throughout human history, ways have been sought to make life easier with technology. Emphasizing that communication technologies, computers, and sensors are beginning to envelop the entire world at a dizzying speed, Sayan stated, "Technology is a gift from God to us. After the blessings of life, it is perhaps one of the greatest favors given to us. Technology is the mother of civilizations, art, and science," highlighting the importance of technology.
Chairman Sayan noted that almost all concepts and technologies such as Industry 4.0, IoT, blockchain, smart cities, artificial intelligence, big data analytics, robotic applications, and cybersecurity, which will continue to dominate the agenda of the coming years in light of recent trends, are closely related to the communications sector. He said, "Our generation is probably witnessing some of the most magnificent events in history. One of them is the creation of true machine intelligence, and the other is humanity being connected to each other through a common digital network that will change all economic paradigms of our planet. In this regard, we have two important goals: To ensure that data produced in our country is not transferred abroad unless technically necessary, and to create attractive conditions to turn our country into a regional data center."
WE WILL WORK TO PREVENT PERSONAL DATA FROM FALLING INTO THE WRONG HANDS
Drawing attention to the critical points of technology, Sayan also spoke about Facebook, which has been in the headlines recently due to data breaches: "Global companies like Facebook, Google, and Twitter, which use big data, need to improve themselves in protecting their users' personal data. Big companies need to be more honest and transparent towards their users. Otherwise, no matter how much you try after the jug is broken, it is impossible to glue the broken jug back together. We have seen that our personal data is used to analyze our behavior patterns and decision-making mechanisms according to behavioral science, and that perceptions are tried to be managed with algorithms. On one hand, companies that exploit our data completely while claiming to defend freedom of expression have had their masks removed. It is now up to us to play a greater role in protecting the rights of our citizens against these giant internet companies. We are talking about a great development, but the use of data belonging to 50 million users by a company in a political campaign shows how our perceptions are managed and that technological progress also contains features that need to be paid attention to. An ordinary user is not very aware of what the applications they install on their phone or computer do in the background. Warnings to users about not sharing their personal data on digital platforms like Facebook need to be targeted. Instead of trying to distance masses with negative expressions in behavioral communication, showing the danger will be more effective in terms of awareness."
Describing the internet as an ocean, Sayan said, "While explaining the internet environment and its benefits, and while making arrangements for the country's broadband infrastructure to cover every home, we will continue both to raise awareness and to make regulations so that our citizens' personal data, which is being tried to be turned into a commercial commodity, does not fall into the wrong hands."
Chairman Sayan provided the following information about the work of USOM, which controls our international cybersecurity: "We have conducted studies against applications that endanger the security of especially smartphone users and the privacy of citizens' personal information. In this context, we have detected that out of 25 mobile contact applications we examined, in addition to accessing the information in your contacts, 5 can access SMS, 7 can access call logs, 2 can access the phone's camera, and 4 can access location information. We have also detected applications among these that can access the user's SIM card information, IMEI number, and microphone, and perform call forwarding or call cancellation operations."
VIRTUALIZATION WILL PROVIDE MANY BENEFITS
Sharing his predictions about the communications sector, Sayan said, "I think innovations such as architectures called mobile edge or end-user communication or multi-access edge communication that do not strain networks, solutions created at the radio or access network level, software-based networks, and virtualization of network functions will bring many benefits with them."
Speaking about the progress of artificial intelligence, Sayan said, "In the past few years, very important progress has been made in the field of artificial intelligence. Artificial intelligence is used in the development of driverless cars, smart buildings, medical robots, smart education systems, and many more applications. When used in production, it provides automation, enables smarter, faster, cheaper processes, and thus increases efficiency, and is seen as an area that can boost economic development with its potential."
WE MUST TAKE STEPS TO ENSURE TECHNOLOGICAL SECURITY
Emphasizing that technology has both a side that makes life easier and a dangerous side, Sayan said, "While we need to think about how new technologies will make our lives easier and how to make these technologies more accessible, on the other hand, we also need to think about how to ensure the security of these new technologies and take steps in that direction."
Sayan also mentioned the studies they have conducted on this issue: "As an institution, our work in this area within the framework of the policies determined by our Ministry continues intensively with the contributions of our sector. I am pleased to state that in applications such as AVCI, AZAD, and KASIRGA, which we have developed for the earliest detection of cyber threats, we use artificial intelligence, machine learning, and big data analysis technologies in our domestic and national solutions developed with our own resources. Our goal in cybersecurity is to be one of the hardest targets."
ICT IS THE BACKBONE OF DIGITAL ECONOMY AND DIGITAL SOCIETY
Recording that technology has an important place in making people's lives easier, Sayan said, "Great duties fall on us to be among the countries that produce technology. With institutions, organizations, and companies working together to shape the next step, important steps are being taken on the path to a strong Turkey. There is a sentence that our institution has adopted as a motto in making all regulations and that I frequently mention: 'Information and Communication Technologies are the backbone of the digital economy and digital society.'"
WE ARE BRINGING TOGETHER TECHNOLOGIES THAT INCREASE THE POTENTIAL OF 5G
5G, which countries are in a great race for and where Turkey is also making big leaps, was also on Sayan's agenda. Speaking about the 5GTR Forum established with the efforts of the Ministry of Transport, Maritime Affairs and Communications and BTK, Sayan said, "We are working to transition to 5G and Beyond technologies with domestic and national capabilities to the highest possible extent. In this sense, under the 5GTR Forum, we are bringing together new information and communication technologies that increase the potential of 5G and beyond technologies with the vertical sectors that will benefit from them. The 5G Valley Open Test Field will provide new R&D opportunities for all stakeholders of the electronic communications sector, primarily Turkcell and our other mobile operators and universities, enable research and projects within the framework of public-university-operator-industry collaborations, create high value-added job opportunities in the ecosystem, and contribute to employment."
Concluding his speech with the words "The world needs dreamers as well as doers. But it needs those who turn their dreams into reality even more," Sayan said, "I wish the Turkcell Technology Summit to be a successful event and to be an occasion for the growth and development of our sector and the development of domestic and national solutions."
MINISTER ÖZLÜ: TURKEY'S OIL IS TECHNOLOGY
Minister of Science, Industry and Technology Faruk Özlü, who stated that the organized summit was successful in addressing both today and the future, said about the technological developments, "Industry 4.0 and 5.0 have enveloped all our lives from production to economy. Technologies that were once the subject of films have now become indispensable in our lives. If we do not see our deficiencies in this regard, we will miss not only the future but also our present."
Emphasizing that concepts like cybersecurity, Internet of Things, big data are very important today, Özlü said, "We want to shout 'Turkey Makes' in every field. Turkey is a country powerful enough to achieve everything. We will not just say 'Turkey Makes' and leave it at that. We will lay all the building blocks for it to make everything."
Underlining that progress can only be achieved by developing technology, not just following it, Özlü said, "Turkey's oil is technology. Our gold mine is our young people who produce programs and software. We will hold the Einsteins of artificial intelligence in high regard."
MINISTER ARSLAN: CYBERSECURITY IS THE WAR ZONE OF THE FUTURE
Minister of Transport, Maritime Affairs and Communications Ahmet Arslan, who drew attention to the fact that technology is transforming us more than ever in the century we live in, reminded that there is not a single area untouched by technology. Stating that concepts such as Internet of Things, Industry 4.0, artificial intelligence, virtualization, smart cities, smart transportation are shaping life, Arslan said, "While we are discussing 4.0, in the near future we will be talking about Human 2.0. I foresee that humanity will move to a whole different dimension with issues like brain control, artificial organ production, artificial intelligence, climate change."
Reminding that the internet has ceased to be just a connection tool, Minister Arslan said about artificial intelligence in his speech, "According to research, by 2051, artificial intelligences will be able to do many things, and by 2136, all professions that people have. Communication will be managed by artificial intelligence. Things that pass through people's minds will be realized instantly. As Stephen Hawking said, artificial intelligence machines could bring the end of the human race. Therefore, our security in software areas is very important. Let's not forget that cybersecurity, which our Ministry is also working on sensitively, is the war zone of the future."
Turkcell's CEO Kaan Terzioğlu, who hosted the program, also spoke about the importance of technology. Talking about the development processes of technology, Terzioğlu said, "Power was oil in the 3rd Industrial Revolution. But today's oil is data."
In the summit where many topics related to technology were evaluated with intense participation, Turkey's position in technology and what Turkey has achieved were discussed.