National AI leader, ecosystem builder, and deep-tech strategist with 20+ years turning cutting-edge research into large-scale impact for Türkiye and beyond.
As Director of the TÜBİTAK BİLGEM Artificial Intelligence Institute (YZE) I steer six competence centers—FinTech, Intelligent Manufacturing, Smart Agri & Food, Climate/Sustainability, E-Commerce Tech, and Smart Education—mobilising 116 partner organisations toward Türkiye's National AI Strategy.
Policy & Governance: Co-author of the National AI Strategy Action Plan 2024-25; delegate to OECD ONE AI, GPAI, UNESCO AI Ethics, NATO DAIRB; architect of Türkiye's Trustworthy-AI Accountability Framework and "Reliable AI" certification.
Ecosystem Impact: Launched AI calls that onboarded 50+ private- and public-sector projects mapped to SDG 9 & 13, winning the 2024 Gold "Ecosystem Contribution" Award.
Funding & Innovation: Raised multi-million-euro Horizon Europe & Digital Europe grants; pioneered Türkiye's first 9-B-parameter LLM and the world's first 5G autonomous border crossing.
Previously I scaled B3LAB, delivering national cloud, big-data and ML platforms (Safir Bulut, Safir Buyuk Veri, Safir Zeka) and securing € 4 M+ in Horizon/IPA funds—achievements recognised by IDC and the Future of Cloud & AI Summit.
What I love doing
• Orchestrating multidisciplinary teams that ship AI products on time, at scale and under budget
• Translating AI ethics & governance into deployable standards and certifications
• Building public–private–academic coalitions that accelerate responsible innovation
• Evangelising GenAI, LLMs and digital-twin tech at global forums and C-level boards
If you're tackling grand challenges with AI—whether climate action, secure fintech, smart industry or trustworthy AI governance—feel free to reach out. I'm always open to collaborations that push the frontier while delivering measurable public value.
Membership of Professional Bodies
Editorial Boards
Jury Members
Conference Committees
TUBITAK BILGEM
P.O. Box 41470
Gebze-KOCAELI, TURKEY
Tel/Fax: +90 262 675 3022 / +90 262 646 3187
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