KADEM Women in Innovation Information Center and Demo Day Event Held

Speaking at the opening of the KADEM Women in Innovation Information Center and the Demo Day event, Minister of Industry and Technology Mehmet Fatih Kacır and KADEM Board of Trustees President Sümeyye Erdoğan Bayraktar shared investment data concerning technology entrepreneurship and women entrepreneurs in Turkey.

Minister of Industry and Technology Mehmet Fatih Kacır stated that the strong participation of women in science, technology, innovation, and entrepreneurship is a common goal of the Century of Turkey, announcing that five out of eight technology startups that reached a billion-dollar valuation were founded by women entrepreneurs. Expressing that 28,000 female employees work in more than 13,000 companies operating in 115 technoparks and 36,000 R&D and design centers, Kacır said they ensured the establishment of over 2,700 technology startups through the TÜBİTAK BİGG program and brought thousands of startups to life via Teknofest.

KADEM Board of Trustees President Sümeyye Erdoğan Bayraktar stated that 429 applications from 22 countries were received in the 10th term of the Women in Innovation Program, noting that one out of every four startups receiving investment between 2019 and 2025 had a female co-founder, and 571 female founders received a total of $1.4 billion in investments. Bayraktar noted that the share of female founders in private sector investments remained at 19 percent in 2025, and stated that the new center will offer facilities such as an open office, consultancy, mentoring, investor meetings, and a childcare room. Following the opening program, during the Demo Day event, women entrepreneurs introduced their projects in various fields ranging from artificial intelligence to biotechnology, and from agriculture and food technologies to sustainability to investors.