The head of Türkiye's premier technology event, TEKNOFEST, highlighted that high technology and artificial intelligence (AI) are the keys to the new world, stressing that AI, when combined with the right purpose and ethical values, can provide humanity with a much better future.

Selcuk Bayraktar, speaking at the opening ceremony of TEKNOFEST TRNC, which was held at the old Ercan Airport in Lefkosa, emphasised that AI can enable groundbreaking innovations in health, equal educational opportunity, and countless opportunities that will make life easier.

Noting that the world is being plunged into a terrible darkness, Bayraktar said: "A great crime against humanity, a genocide, is taking place right next to us. Children are being bombed in Gaza.

"This darkness can only be removed by the light of truth. A world in which technology can be used to promote justice and compassion must be established."

Regarding the TRNC's situation, he said the country will not only be a symbol of historical struggles but also of great achievements.

He underscored that the country should be a global centre of attraction for technology and science in the heart of the Mediterranean.

He stressed that the TRNC should be visited not only for vacation but also for science, technology, and production.

Bayraktar said new ideas should be born in the TRNC, adding: "R&D should develop here, and projects that will leave their mark on the world should emerge from here.

"The TRNC is the island of peace. It guarantees peace, security, and brotherhood in the Mediterranean."

Organised by the Turkish Technology Team (T3) Foundation and Türkiye’s Industry and Technology Ministry, TEKNOFEST has been held annually since 2018 with the support of dozens of government bodies, private sector partners, and universities.

Anadolu continues to serve as the festival's global communications partner.

While the event is traditionally held in various Turkish cities in even-numbered years and in Istanbul in odd-numbered years, the TRNC becomes the second international host after Azerbaijan, which welcomed TEKNOFEST for its 10th edition.

In 2024, the event in the southern Turkish city of Adana attracted approximately 1.1 million visitors.

Innovation island

Turkish Industry and Technology Minister Mehmet Fatih Kacir also said at the event that the TRNC could become an innovation island if all parties work together.

"With more than 100,000 university students and its unique beauties, this land can be the address of IT and technology initiatives that will provide services to all over the world," the minister said.

"The excitement of 47,000 young people participating in the six competitions we organised in this TEKNOFEST is the harbinger of a bright future," he said, adding: "Our wish is that this excitement continues in the TRNC."

Haluk Gorgun, head of Türkiye's Defence Industries Agency, said: "We are a country that knows the pain of foreign dependence very well, especially in the field of the defence industry.

"TEKNOFEST has become the biggest exploration platform in our country. TEKNOFEST enabled the discovery of our youth, the most precious resources of the country."