Artificial intelligence (AI) technology has become a pervasive concept, impacting every sector globally. As technology ventures strive to innovate, they are increasingly leveraging AI technology to its fullest extent.
The year 2023 marked a significant milestone in the venture capital sector, with AI companies generating a staggering $50 billion in revenue. The investment trend not only mirrors the expanding maturity and potential of AI technologies but also lays the groundwork for ongoing innovation and growth in the years to come.
Experienced venture capital funds, along with corporate venture capital funds, are placing a significant focus on AI technology. TT Ventures, the venture capital arm of Türk Telekom, notably directed investments toward AI-focused ventures. Similarly, major private lender, Akbank, with a fund of $100 million, is tracking AI technology ventures not only in Türkiye but also internationally. Simya VC, an international early-stage venture fund, invested a total of $2.1 million in six startups in 2023, with AI technology ventures prominently featuring among its investments.
Early-stage ventures
Preparing to establish its second fund in 2024, Simya VC aims to invest in more than 10 ventures this year.
Established as part of a collaboration of Türkiye’s first corporate venture capital fund, 212, Neo Portföy and Alchemist Accelerator, one of the world’s best acceleration programs, to invest in early-stage ventures, Simya VC held discussions with a total of 280 startups last year.
Out of these, it invested in notable startups such as Agrotics in agricultural technology, B2Metric in AI-supported data analytics, Evercopy in AI-based content creation, Juphy in AI-based B2B software as a service (SaaS), Syntonym in generative AI and Werover in renewable energy.
Contributing to global expansion
Selma Bahçıvanoğlu, managing partner at Simya VC, expressed pride in their achievements, noting plans to establish their second fund in 2024. Emphasizing investments in ventures with global visions, Bahçıvanoğlu highlighted their partnership with Alchemist, enabling ventures to leverage support for entering the U.S. market and benefiting from its network effect.
“In a relatively short period of time, akin to a year, we established our first fund, invested in a total of six ventures and expanded our investor portfolio to 90. This achievement is tremendously pride-inducing for us. Within the year 2024, we plan to establish our second fund (Simya 2). With the funds we’ve set up, we aim to invest in over 10 ventures this year,” she noted.
Bahçıvanoğlu also emphasized their investment in globally-minded ventures.
“In today’s world, ventures should not confine themselves to the local market. However, it’s not easy for a venture to solely focus on a strategy of selling to the global market. This is precisely where the ventures in our portfolio, benefiting from the investment they receive from Simya along with the support of Alchemist, one of the world’s best acceleration programs and our partner, come into play,” she said.
“Alchemist provides support for ventures entering the U.S. market and contributes to them through its network effect, thanks to its know-how about the market.”
Investing in innovation
In 2023, Logo Ventures invested in 10 startups, increasing its total investments to 16 with six follow-on investments. Prioritizing ventures capable of addressing future challenges, Logo Ventures opted for Figopara and Kamion, positioned to lead in their respective markets, or those with export potential like Quin AI, Flowla, and CarbonCentrum.
Logo Ventures, which invested in startups in Türkiye, Central and Eastern Europe and Baltic countries last year, contributes to the journey of globalization for ventures by opening its business network to them, aiming to help them reach a better position quickly.
Furthermore, it introduced an innovative approach to investment evaluation in 2023, deploying data-driven evaluation software to streamline and enhance investment processes.
Extensive datasets collected from various sources are interpreted through a specially developed application for the fund, enabling Logo Ventures to evaluate new ventures rapidly and systematically without bias. Through this method, the fund aims to increase efficiency and success in investment processes.
Merve Zabcı, managing partner at Logo Ventures, affirmed their commitment to investing in ventures shaping the future, providing not only financial support but also access to international mentors and a global investor network.
Looking ahead to 2024, Logo Ventures plans to focus on AI applications in various sectors, cybersecurity and climate technologies.
“We continue to invest in startups that can shape the future with their products and technologies. After the investment, we not only provide financial support to ventures but also open up our international mentor and global investor network,” said Zabcı.
“Our aim is to foster successful ventures in the global competition from this region. In this context, we plan to prioritize focusing on various sector applications of artificial intelligence, cybersecurity and climate technologies in the year 2024.”
Akbank launches $100 million investment fund
Major Turkish private lender Akbank has initiated its global investments in the entrepreneurship ecosystem with a $100 million fund through Akbank Ventures while implementing open innovation alongside corporate entrepreneurship and entrepreneurs through Akbank Lab.
Speaking at the Annual Türkiye Entrepreneurship Ecosystem Event, Burcu Civelek Yüce, deputy general manager in charge of Retail Banking and Digital Solutions at Akbank, said Akbank Lab is open to all entrepreneurs.
“We established Akbank Lab in 2016 with the aim of conducting open innovation with financial technology startups from around the world, integrating innovation into our own structure and promoting an internal culture of entrepreneurship. We conducted proof-of-concept studies with nearly 40 financial technology startups, bringing 16 of them to life. Unknowingly, millions of users are now using these applications,” said Yüce.
“We connected these startups with millions of customers and users who log in millions of times, bringing innovative solutions to our customers and the institution. This is an invaluable opportunity for these entrepreneurs. Additionally, we launched the Akbank+ internal entrepreneurship program. We invested $1 million in total, $500,000 each, in two entrepreneurs: Westlog and Volt. Now, we have started the second round.”
International investment opportunity
Regarding Akbank’s role as a global investor, Yüce explained that as of April 2023, they established a corporate venture capital company in the Netherlands, where they focus on investments in the global startup ecosystem.
“We have identified three general investment strategies. We can invest through existing private equity and venture capital (VC) companies. We can directly invest in startups worldwide. In 2023, we collaborated with seven different partners,” she noted.
“We can identify the areas we invested in during 2023 and will focus on in 2024 as follows: We strongly believe in solutions for sustainability. We are ready to collaborate with those who have solutions and startups in digital currency, tokens, generative AI, regenerative finance, and Web3.”
Fujifilm’s innovation ensures competitive edge for 90-year-old company
Over the past 30 years, as photography and imaging technologies have transitioned into the digital realm, some brands have disappeared while others have remained standing thanks to the power of innovation and their ability to adapt quickly.
During the era when digital photography and videography flourished, many brands failed to survive. Brands such as Kodak, Agfa, Konica Minolta and Rollei vanished, while Fujifilm managed to stay afloat with its innovative investments.
Celebrating its 90th anniversary this year, Fujifilm positions itself as one of the foremost technology companies globally, conducting its operations driven by the mission to enhance the quality of life for people worldwide.
Fujifilm’s commitment is evident through its Open Innovation Hub, a platform aimed at solving societal issues and fostering new values under the priority areas of environment, health, daily life and work style, as outlined in its Sustainable Value Plan 2030 (SVP2030).
Building future
Present in Türkiye since 2012 as Fujifilm Foreign Trade Inc., the company actively operates in various sectors including medical systems, graphic systems, industrial products, digital cameras and photo printing products.
Keitaro So, head of Fujifilm Türkiye and Fujifilm Healthcare Türkiye, attributes the company’s success in swiftly adapting to digital transformation to its innovative capabilities and strategic acquisitions made at the right time.
“Fujifilm utilizes ‘open innovation’ methods to enhance its innovation activities. It collaborates with partners to develop new solutions and seeks opportunities to acquire technologies and businesses through M&A or small investments in startups. To support these open innovation approaches, facilities are provided for visitors to inspire, discuss and brainstorm,” said Keitaro.
“With the corporate slogan ‘Value from Innovation,’ Fujifilm brings together various innovative technologies, perspectives and competencies with a flexible mindset, creating new value for customers and building a better future for everyone.”
Innovation competition
In a bid to encourage innovation among Turkish students, Fujifilm organized an open innovation competition in 2023, aiming for the creation of high-quality projects that could be implemented.
The Fujifilm Innovation Competition, with its algorithm named “Özgelecek,” attracted participation from undergraduate, graduate and postgraduate students, making it one of Türkiye’s most comprehensive and unique competitions.
During the competition, 95 teams developed projects under the metaverse category, 21 teams under Fujifilm Technologies, and 183 teams under climate change.
Segregating waste oil
Its second term has attracted 1,422 applications selecting one of the three categories and applying through kargakarga.com. The teams from 49 different cities and 63 universities started not only a competition but also a natural learning process.
The winning team in the climate change category was FAMK, focusing on segregating household waste oil using a CBS system, converting them into biofuel to contribute to the economy and engage the public in the fight against climate change.
The FAMK initiative earned the opportunity to visit the Fujifilm Innovation Hub.
Ahmet Fatih Akansu, a member of the team alongside Meryem Payveren and Alieren Sarı, visited the center that opened in July 2022 in Ratingen, Germany.
The center, built upon Fujifilm’s expertise in photosensitive materials, serves as a space where cutting-edge technologies, continuously developed through collaborative projects, are merged with needs and ideas to create new values.
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