ITU ARI Teknokent’s incubation centre ITU Çekirdek has announced the highly anticipated programme of Türkiye’s biggest entrepreneurship event, Big Bang Startup Challenge, which will be held at UNIQ Istanbul on 18-19 December this year under the theme ‘Lead the Future’. In this unforgettable two-day event, 50 of the best local and foreign technology initiatives of the year will take the stage on the first day and the awards ceremony will be held on the second day after the opening speech by ITU Rector Prof. Dr. Hasan Mandal and ITU ARI Teknokent Chairman of the Board Prof. Dr. Gülsün Sağlamer. Big Bang, with Sertab Erener adding colour with her powerful voice, promises to be a feast that will bring the excitement of entrepreneurship to the summits with award-winning competitions and experience areas!

The programme of the Big Bang Startup Challenge, which will be held for the 13th time this year by ITU Çekirdek, the incubation centre of ITU ARI Teknokent, and which will bring together the best startups of the year on a local and global scale with investors, private companies and the public, has been announced. On the 18th and 19th of December, 50 startups that will present in 7 different sectoral verticals (Automotive and Mobility with the support of OİB, Energy with the support of EPDK & Elder, ITU Seed, Machine Learning and Artificial Intelligence, Online Marketplace & Online Platform, Health and Life Sciences, Talent and Success) will take the stage to compete for awards and investments at Big Bang, which is expected to create a next wave in the world of entrepreneurship. On the first day of Big Bang, the TOP 50 startups will make their presentations and global investors from many countries, especially the UK, will follow the presentations live with simultaneous translation. In the event where local and global entrepreneurs will take the stage, simultaneous translation will be provided for the attendees in the hall. ITU ARI Teknokent Director General Prof. Dr. Attila Dikbaş will deliver the opening speeches on the first day of the event, where the startups will meet with awards and investments, while ITU Rector Prof. Dr. Hasan Mandal and ITU ARI Teknokent Chairman Prof. Dr. Gülsün Sağlamer will deliver the opening speeches on the second day.

Memduh Karakullukçu, Founding Partner of D4 Ventures, who will be the keynote speaker on the first day of the event, hosted this year by M. Serdar Kuzuloğlu, will assess how artificial intelligence is reshaping the balance of power between countries in his speech entitled “Artificial Intelligence: From Big-Tech to Entrepreneurs, From the US to China, Technology that Opens Power Hierarchies to Competition’, will assess how artificial intelligence is reshaping the balance of power between countries. The keynote speaker on the second day will be Ayşegül İldeniz, who for many years was Intel’s Regional President for 67 countries and a member of the European Board of Directors, as well as World Vice President of the New Technologies Group at Intel’s headquarters in Silicon Valley, with her speech entitled ‘Running in the Future’.

Big Bang’s enthusiasm and energy will culminate in Sertab Erener’s concert

Sertab Erener, the most prolific name in pop music, will take the stage at this year’s much-anticipated Big Bang concert, which will be full of entertainment and entrepreneurial presentations. Erener will be performing her favourite songs to close the second day of the event, giving delegates a musical feast from the 90s to today. Attendees will also receive surprise prizes at the Big Bang, where a prize-winning Q&A session will be held. In the foyer area, investors, private companies and technology enthusiasts will be able to network, have fun in the experience areas and examine the products of the entrepreneurs.

The formula for globalisation on the Big Bang stage

Hundreds of startups that have developed their technologies with the support of ITU ARI Teknokent and ITU Çekirdek have been strengthened by the awards and investments they received on the Big Bang stage and have become global success stories. Among them are startups that have established a distribution network in more than 40 countries, received investments from Silicon Valley, changed sectors and are the unicorn candidates of the future. In 2024, Big Bang is expected to give birth to initiatives that will be talked about as much as in previous years.

Stakeholders strengthen the Big Bang universe with their support

In Big Bang, Elginkan Foundation is a Diamond Stakeholder; EMRA|Elder and Automotive Industry Exporters Association (OIB) are Platinum Stakeholders; AGESA, AKSigorta, Anadolu ISUZU, Aveon Global Insurance, Bursa Coşkunöz Education Foundation, Eczacıbaşı, EnerjiSA, Ford Otosan, Pegasus, Tat Metal, Teknasyon, Yalçıner Patent, Yandex and Yapı Kredi Technology are Gold Stakeholders. This year’s Big Bang event supporters are Marketing Türkiye and Migros Hemen.

The event is free and open to everyone. For detailed information and registration for technology and startup enthusiasts: https://bigbang.itucekirdek.com/en/