WRITTEN BY: MUSTAFA CELIKER
The Rise of Local Power in Technology: Türkiye’s Journey and the Role of Çeliker Technology
All around the world, technology has become the most powerful driver of economic development, national security and social welfare. Countries are now competing not only with their natural resources but also with the technologies they develop. Turkey has been going through a significant transformation process in recent years in order to take its place in this global race and become a country that produces its own technology.
However, this process is a challenging journey that must be carried out not only with industrial investments or the work of a few leading companies, but also with the integrated efforts of state policies, university-industry collaborations, R&D centers and the entrepreneurship ecosystem.
Development of Technology in Türkiye: An Adventure
Türkiye’s technological adventure blossomed with industrialization initiatives that began in the mid-20th century. However, for many years, an economic model that focused on technology consumption rather than technology production was adopted. Especially in critical areas such as the defense industry, communications, energy and health, external dependency emerged as a threat to Türkiye’s independence and economic sustainability.
Since the beginning of the 2000s, awareness has increased. Important steps have been taken such as encouraging R&D investments, establishing technoparks, TÜBİTAK support and defense industry projects. With the work of companies within many state-supported organizations and the initiatives of the private sector; significant projects have begun to emerge in unmanned aerial vehicles, domestic software solutions and electronic systems.
At the point we have reached today, Turkey has started to talk about a localization rate approaching 80 percent in the defense industry and a domestic production power that is increasing every day in civilian technologies. Among the most visible fruits of this are projects such as domestic automobile projects, domestic aircraft projects, satellite projects in many areas, especially in the defense industry.
However, localization efforts are gaining momentum not only in large projects but also in new generation areas such as embedded systems, smart technologies, artificial intelligence applications and the Internet of Things ( IoT ). At this point, developing not only the hardware but also the software layers running on the hardware locally is of critical importance for data security and independence.
Why Is Localization So Critical?
A country’s dependence on foreign technology poses not only an economic but also a strategic risk. Providing critical technologies from abroad leads to both high costs and a decrease in the ability to act independently in international crises. In addition, hidden security vulnerabilities ( backdoors ) or data breach risks contained in imported technologies pose a major threat to national security.
Therefore, it is necessary to produce and own technology, not just use it. For Türkiye, this situation is no longer a choice but a necessity.
The common feature of the countries with the largest economies in the world today is that they develop their own technologies, produce patents and have a say in technology exports. As Turkey moves forward on this path, the importance of local initiatives, engineers and R&D companies is greater than ever.
The Place of the Private Sector in Türkiye’s Technology Journey
Although the localization of technology is supported by state policies, the real critical role falls on the companies and engineering teams in the field. The private sector plays a leading role in the process of integrating basic research conducted at universities into industry, turning it into products and commercializing it.
Solutions produced by local companies, especially in areas that directly affect daily life such as smart systems, mobile solutions, and embedded software, ensure that technology culture spreads to the grassroots. Here, the contribution of boutique-scale but high-technology manufacturing companies cannot be ignored.
So, What is the Role of Çeliker Technology in the Localization of Technologies in Türkiye?
As Çeliker Technology, with this awareness, we actively contribute to the process of localization of technology. As a company, we carry out multifaceted studies in order to reduce our country’s external dependency and develop original technologies.
Autonomous Systems and Unmanned Vehicle Technologies
As Çeliker Technology, we are actively working on developing autonomous unmanned ground vehicles (UGVs) and autonomous systems. We produce all critical components of these vehicles, from system design to software architecture, with our own engineering power. Autonomous navigation, mission management and control systems are designed entirely with domestic algorithms. Thus, we offer independent solutions in both military and civilian areas of use. We are also actively involved in the field of agriculture with our gasoline and electric (hybrid system) agricultural spraying drone project ZİHA.
Artificial Intelligence and Control Software
The artificial intelligence software we develop both increases the decision-making capabilities of autonomous systems and offers local solutions in areas such as data analytics and machine learning. We develop
original artificial intelligence models, especially for critical functions of autonomous vehicles such as environmental perception, target recognition and route optimization . In parallel, we build high-performance, reliable systems in the field of control software, eliminating external dependency in critical applications.
Mobile Applications and IoT Supported Systems
Çeliker Technology also carries out completely domestic projects in the field of mobile application development.
Our own mobile applications provide services to a wide range of areas from smart home systems to autonomous vehicles, from IoT platforms to field management systems. We work particularly on IoT- supported systems, developing smart solutions based on the Internet of Things, and establishing secure communication protocols between devices.
Embedded System Software and PCB Designs
In the field of embedded systems, we design the hardware and software layers, which are the “brain” of the devices, with our own engineering knowledge.
PCB card designs and embedded software on these cards are developed from scratch without external dependency. In this way, we ensure that our devices reach superior standards in terms of both security and efficiency.
Local Power in Smart Home Systems
In the field of smart home systems, we are working on products that have a high local content rate and compete with international standards in terms of both comfort and security.
Conclusion: The Future Will Belong to Nations That Produce Their Own Technology
Turkey has taken important steps in technology in recent years. However, the real success lies in creating a sustainable and inclusive domestic technology ecosystem.
In this regard, the vision of the private sector, the determination of engineers and the productivity of R&D centers will be decisive, as much as the support provided by the state.
As Çeliker Technology, we carry the responsibility of being one of the leading actors of this ecosystem.
We know that producing our own technology is indispensable for building an independent future, creating a strong economy and having a say in international competition. With this awareness, we keep the “local and national technology” concept alive in every project, every product, every line of code and look to the future with hope.
As Çeliker Technology, we are proud to be a part of this march. We work with the awareness that by increasing local power in technology, we are building not only today but also tomorrow. Because we know that;
“A strong future belongs to nations that produce their own technology.”
