The contemporary interstate rivalry makes the use of artificial intelligence a primary variable in defining cyber sovereignty and national security infrastructure. Türkiye, which has spent 25 years undergoing intense digitalization, is now moving towards a new era of development through its Artificial Intelligence Vision and Action Plan for 2026-2030. Introduced by President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan last month, the plan comprises four action axes: "Discover, Benefit, Produce and Govern."
Türkiye’s current AI capabilities rest on two decades of systematic institutional development and layered policy frameworks. The new vision leverages this process to further advance Türkiye's digitalization toward a structured, global approach, while establishing data-based administration. The current plan provides a credible foundation for Türkiye's algorithmic leap.
Leveraging strategic advantages
Türkiye’s most distinctive competitive edge lies in its proven track record in autonomous defense technologies. The success of its unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) ecosystem, nurtured under the National Technology Move, has created powerful spillover effects into civilian sectors. Military-grade expertise in areas such as computer vision, sensor fusion, autonomous navigation, and swarm intelligence is now flowing into fintech, health care, smart agriculture, logistics and industrial automation. This military-to-civilian technology transfer is accelerating the growth of a vibrant AI-focused startup ecosystem and mobilizing both domestic and transnational venture capital.
