In recent years, artificial intelligence and the robotics industry in Türkiye have become some of the most important areas of the country’s technology and industrial policies. Artificial intelligence is no longer simply a subject associated with the software industry. It has become a key technology in the transformation of automotive, defense, machinery, electronics, energy, healthcare, logistics, agriculture, finance, and manufacturing.
Robotics is one of the most important physical applications of artificial intelligence. Industrial robots, autonomous mobile robots, humanoid robots, surgical robots, agricultural robots, and unmanned aerial, maritime, and ground vehicles are increasingly being developed and used in Türkiye.
Türkiye’s strong manufacturing infrastructure, automotive and defense industries, growing electronics sector, universities, technology parks, and extensive SME base provide significant advantages for transferring artificial intelligence and robotics technologies into industrial applications.
The Türkiye Artificial Intelligence Action Plan, announced in 2026, also aims to accelerate this transformation. Among its targets are increasing data-center installed capacity to at least 1 GW by 2030 and training 10,000 advanced artificial intelligence specialists and 100,000 artificial intelligence application professionals.
- Türkiye’s Artificial Intelligence Ecosystem
Türkiye’s artificial intelligence ecosystem is developing around three main structures:
Government and public-sector support
Universities and research centers
Private companies and technology startups
Technology parks, incubators, investment funds, industrial companies, and SMEs are also important components of the ecosystem.
One of the important programs supporting artificial intelligence research is TÜBİTAK’s Artificial Intelligence Ecosystem Call, which aims to bring academia and industry together.
Priority areas include:
Smart manufacturing systems
Smart agriculture, food, and livestock
Financial technologies
Climate change and sustainability
Smart education technologies
This approach demonstrates that Türkiye is not focusing solely on developing artificial intelligence software, but also on applying AI to real industrial problems.
- Artificial Intelligence and Smart Manufacturing
One of the most important applications of artificial intelligence for Türkiye is smart manufacturing.
Traditional factories largely depend on predefined production programs, whereas AI-supported factories can continuously collect production data and analyze their performance.
Artificial intelligence can be used for:
Production planning
Quality control
Predictive maintenance
Energy management
Inventory management
Demand forecasting
Supply-chain optimization
Computer vision
Production-line optimization
For example, in an automotive factory, cameras can continuously inspect products and identify manufacturing defects.
Data collected from machine sensors, including temperature, vibration, and pressure, can also be analyzed by AI to predict the probability of machine failure.
This approach is known as predictive maintenance.
- Robotics Industry in Türkiye
The robotics industry represents the physical side of Türkiye’s artificial intelligence transformation.
Robotic applications in Türkiye are particularly concentrated in:
Automotive
White goods
Metal
Machinery
Electronics
Plastics
Food
Logistics
Defense
Robots are increasingly being used for repetitive tasks, high-precision operations, and tasks that may be dangerous for humans.
Examples include:
Welding robots
Painting robots
Assembly robots
Palletizing robots
Packaging robots
Cutting robots
CNC automation systems
Robotic quality-control systems
These technologies are becoming important components of modern factories in Türkiye.
- Industrial Robots and the Automotive Industry
Türkiye’s automotive industry is one of the most important sectors for robotics.
Automotive production facilities in and around Bursa, Kocaeli, Sakarya, and Istanbul use advanced levels of automation.
Robots are particularly used for:
Welding
Body assembly
Painting
Parts handling
Quality control
Assembly operations
Logistics
In the future, artificial intelligence and robotic systems are expected to become increasingly integrated within automotive factories.
As a result, robots may evolve from machines that simply execute programmed commands into systems capable of analyzing production conditions and making certain decisions in real time.
- Artificial Intelligence and Robotics in the Defense Industry
Türkiye’s defense industry is one of the areas where artificial intelligence and robotics technologies are developing rapidly.
Unmanned systems developed in Türkiye include:
UAVs
Armed unmanned aerial vehicles
Unmanned ground vehicles
Unmanned maritime vehicles
Autonomous systems
Reconnaissance and surveillance systems
Artificial intelligence can be used in these systems for:
Computer vision
Target recognition
Object classification
Autonomous navigation
Route planning
Sensor fusion
Decision support
For this reason, the defense industry can serve as an important technology laboratory for developing and commercializing Türkiye’s artificial intelligence and robotics capabilities.
- Unmanned Ground Vehicles
One of the notable areas of development in Türkiye’s robotics industry is unmanned ground vehicles.
These vehicles can be used for:
Military logistics
Reconnaissance
Security
Search and rescue
Operations in dangerous environments
In the future, artificial intelligence could allow these vehicles to operate with less human intervention and navigate complex terrain more independently.
- Unmanned Maritime Vehicles
Because Türkiye is surrounded by seas on three sides, maritime robotics is also strategically important.
Unmanned maritime vehicles can be used for:
Maritime surveillance
Port security
Underwater research
Environmental monitoring
Search and rescue
Maritime operations
Defense
AI-supported navigation systems could allow maritime vehicles to perform certain missions with limited or no direct human intervention.
This field represents an important intersection between Türkiye’s defense industry and maritime sector.
- Artificial Intelligence and the Machinery Industry
Türkiye’s strong machinery industry provides an important foundation for artificial intelligence and robotics.
The machines of the future will not consist only of mechanical systems.
Modern machinery increasingly combines:
Sensors
Cameras
Processors
Artificial intelligence software
Robotic arms
IoT connectivity
Cloud systems
Consequently, the ability to manufacture smart machinery will become an important competitive advantage for Türkiye’s machinery manufacturers.
- Artificial Intelligence and the Electronics Industry
The development of artificial intelligence and robotics also directly affects the electronics industry.
Robotic systems require:
Processors
Sensors
Cameras
Motor controllers
Control boards
Communication modules
Power electronics
Embedded systems
Developing Türkiye’s electronics and defense-electronics capabilities is therefore critical for the localization of the robotics industry.
In the long term, it will be important for Türkiye not only to assemble robots but also to develop their electronic and control systems domestically.
- Artificial Intelligence and Robotics in Healthcare
Healthcare is another important application area.
Artificial intelligence can be used for:
Medical imaging
Disease-risk analysis
Clinical decision support
Drug research
Patient monitoring
Personalized medicine
Robotics can be used in:
Surgical robots
Rehabilitation robots
Elderly-care robots
Hospital logistics robots
Türkiye’s growing healthcare tourism potential could also create opportunities for the development and adoption of these technologies.
- Agricultural Robotics
Türkiye’s large agricultural sector creates a significant market for artificial intelligence and robotics.
Smart agriculture systems can combine:
Drone imagery
Satellite data
Soil sensors
Weather data
Artificial intelligence
Autonomous machinery
to increase agricultural productivity.
Agricultural robots could increasingly be used for:
Harvesting
Weed removal
Spraying
Irrigation
Product classification
Soil analysis
The inclusion of smart agriculture, food, and livestock among the priority areas of TÜBİTAK’s 2026 Artificial Intelligence Ecosystem Call demonstrates the strategic importance of this field.
- Logistics and Warehouse Robots
Türkiye’s position as an important logistics bridge between Europe and Asia creates significant potential for warehouse automation and robotic logistics.
In modern warehouses, robots can perform:
Product transportation
Order picking
Packaging
Inventory counting
Pallet transportation
Artificial intelligence can determine where products should be stored, which orders should be prepared first, and which routes robots should follow.
The widespread adoption of these systems could increase efficiency in major logistics centers, e-commerce warehouses, and organized industrial zones.
- SMEs and Artificial Intelligence
A significant portion of Türkiye’s industrial economy consists of small and medium-sized enterprises.
For this reason, artificial intelligence and robotics transformation should not be limited to large corporations.
Potential AI and automation applications for SMEs include:
AI-assisted accounting
Sales forecasting
Inventory optimization
Customer service
Automated visual quality inspection
Robotic production cells
CNC automation
Energy optimization
Providing SMEs with access to affordable AI and automation solutions will be critical for increasing overall industrial productivity in Türkiye.
- Artificial Intelligence Support Programs in Türkiye
TÜBİTAK is one of the major institutions supporting artificial intelligence research and development in Türkiye.
The 1711 Artificial Intelligence Ecosystem Program brings companies together with technology providers and academic research institutions.
The program uses a consortium model involving:
A customer organization
A technology provider
A university or public research organization
TÜBİTAK Artificial Intelligence Institute
This model aims to transform research and technological capabilities into practical industrial applications.
Public-sector artificial intelligence ecosystem programs have also been developed to address the AI needs of government institutions.
This demonstrates that artificial intelligence is becoming a strategic technology not only for private companies but also for public services.
- Domestic Artificial Intelligence Models in Türkiye
One of Türkiye’s long-term objectives is not simply to use foreign artificial intelligence models but also to develop its own AI models and infrastructure.
In 2026, the Ministry of Industry and Technology announced plans to make Bilge, a 37-billion-parameter Turkish language model developed by TÜBİTAK, available to developers.
Domestic language models can have strategic importance in areas such as:
Turkish-language data processing
Public services
Defense
Finance
Education
Healthcare
Customer services
Industry
Developing domestic AI capabilities can therefore contribute to technological sovereignty and reduce dependence on external platforms.
- Data Centers and Artificial Intelligence Infrastructure
Developing an artificial intelligence industry requires more than software developers and algorithms.
Large AI models require:
Data centers
GPU infrastructure
High-speed networks
Electricity
Cooling systems
Large-scale data storage
Cybersecurity
Under the Türkiye Artificial Intelligence Action Plan, the country aims to increase data-center installed capacity to at least 1 GW by 2030.
This objective is important for Türkiye’s potential to become a regional artificial intelligence and data-center hub.
- The Convergence of Robotics and Artificial Intelligence
In the future, artificial intelligence and robotics will increasingly become interconnected rather than separate industries.
Many current robots perform specific tasks according to predefined programming. Future robots will increasingly be able to perceive their surroundings, learn, and adapt to changing conditions.
This transformation can be represented as:
Sensors → Data → Artificial Intelligence → Decision → Robotic Action → Feedback
For example, instead of simply moving a component, a future manufacturing robot could identify the component using cameras, detect a production defect, and modify its operation accordingly.
The increasing focus on generative AI solutions for robotics and industrial automation in European research programs also demonstrates the growing convergence of these technologies.
- Human-Robot Collaboration
In the factories of the future, human-robot collaboration may become more important than simply replacing humans with robots.
Humans can focus on:
Decision-making
Design
Creativity
Complex problem-solving
while robots can perform:
Heavy lifting
Repetitive operations
Dangerous tasks
Precision assembly
These systems are commonly referred to as cobots – collaborative robots.
For Türkiye’s large SME ecosystem, flexible and relatively affordable cobot systems could become an important growth area.
- Important Regions for AI and Robotics in Türkiye
Several regions stand out in the development of artificial intelligence and robotics.
Istanbul
Istanbul is Türkiye’s largest technology, finance, and entrepreneurship center.
It is particularly important for:
Software
Fintech
Artificial intelligence
Electronics
Robotics
Startup development
Ankara
Ankara is strong in defense technologies, public-sector technologies, universities, and research institutions.
Kocaeli
Kocaeli is important for automotive, chemical, machinery, and advanced manufacturing.
Bursa
Bursa’s automotive, machinery, textile, and supplier industries create a major market for robotic automation.
Izmir
Izmir has significant potential in universities, technology startups, port operations, logistics, agricultural technologies, and defense industries.
Konya
Konya has strong potential in machinery, automotive suppliers, agricultural machinery, and manufacturing technologies.
Kayseri
Furniture, machinery, metalworking, and manufacturing industries make Kayseri an important market for industrial automation.
- The Future of Artificial Intelligence and Defense Technologies
Türkiye’s experience in the defense industry provides an important advantage in artificial intelligence and robotics.
Future developments may include:
Autonomous aircraft
Swarm systems
Unmanned ground vehicles
Unmanned maritime vehicles
AI-supported radar systems
Computer-vision systems
Autonomous logistics
Simulation technologies
Some of these technologies can later be transferred into civilian applications.
- Artificial Intelligence and the Green Transformation
Artificial intelligence can also contribute to improving the environmental performance of industry.
For example, AI can:
Predict energy consumption
Reduce production waste
Optimize machine energy usage
Improve logistics routes
Increase production efficiency
Artificial intelligence can therefore become an important tool in Türkiye’s green transformation and low-carbon manufacturing efforts.
- Challenges Facing the Industry
Despite the significant opportunities, Türkiye’s artificial intelligence and robotics industries face several challenges.
Skilled Human Resources
AI, robotics, electronics, mathematics, and data science require highly qualified specialists.
Advanced Technology Hardware
Dependence on imported GPUs, sensors, advanced processors, and certain electronic components remains an important issue.
Investment Costs
Installing robotic systems can involve substantial initial investment, particularly for SMEs.
Data
The performance of artificial intelligence depends heavily on the availability of high-quality and reliable data.
Energy
Large data centers and AI computing systems can consume substantial amounts of electricity.
Cybersecurity
Connecting factories to the internet and AI systems creates new cybersecurity risks.
Industry-Academia Cooperation
The transfer of university research into commercial products and industrial applications needs to be strengthened further.
- Major Opportunities for Türkiye
One of Türkiye’s most important advantages is its strong real-world manufacturing economy.
Rather than developing AI companies solely as software businesses, Türkiye can build a major market around:
Artificial Intelligence + Automotive + Machinery + Defense + Electronics + Energy + Logistics + Agriculture
Türkiye’s position between Europe, the Middle East, North Africa, Central Asia, and the Balkans also creates opportunities to export robotic and AI solutions to regional markets.
This geographical and industrial position could become an important competitive advantage.
- The Future of Robotics in Türkiye
Over the coming years, the following areas are likely to develop further:
Industrial robots
Cobots
Autonomous mobile robots
Warehouse robots
Agricultural robots
Healthcare robots
Unmanned ground vehicles
Unmanned maritime vehicles
Unmanned aerial systems
AI-supported CNC machines
Smart factories
Computer-vision systems
Robotic quality-control systems
Smart logistics
Humanoid robots
26. The Future of Artificial Intelligence in Türkiye
On the artificial intelligence side, important development areas will include:
Turkish large language models
Generative artificial intelligence
Computer vision
Natural language processing
AI-supported defense systems
Healthcare AI
Financial AI
Industrial AI
Smart cities
AI-supported education
Autonomous systems
Türkiye’s 2026 Artificial Intelligence Action Plan, together with TÜBİTAK’s AI ecosystem programs, indicates that artificial intelligence is becoming increasingly institutionalized as a strategic technology.
- A Strategic Model for Türkiye
Türkiye can strengthen its global competitiveness in artificial intelligence and robotics through the following industrial development model:
Education → Research → Artificial Intelligence → Electronics → Robotics → Smart Machinery → Smart Factories → Domestic Production → Exports
The next stage could be:
Domestic Technology → Regional Technology Hub → Global Technology Brand
For Türkiye, the greatest opportunity is not simply to use artificial intelligence software, but to combine artificial intelligence with physical manufacturing.
The future industrial transformation can therefore be summarized as:
Artificial Intelligence → Robotics → Smart Machines → Smart Factories → Autonomous Systems → High-Tech Manufacturing → Global Exports
Türkiye’s artificial intelligence and robotics industries are still in a relatively early but rapidly developing stage. However, the country’s strong automotive, defense, machinery, electronics, white-goods, logistics, and manufacturing infrastructure provides a large market for these technologies.
The convergence of artificial intelligence and robotics could significantly transform Türkiye’s industrial structure over the coming decades.
Türkiye’s long-term objective should not simply be to become a country that uses robots and artificial intelligence, but rather a country that designs, manufactures, develops, and exports robots, AI systems, electronic components, software, and smart machines.
The transformation of Türkiye’s future industrial economy can therefore be represented as:
AI → Robotics → Smart Machinery → Smart Factories → Autonomous Systems → High-Value Manufacturing → Global Exports
Government AI strategies, TÜBİTAK ecosystem programs, and stronger cooperation between public institutions, industry, universities, and technology companies can provide the institutional foundation for this transformation.
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