Turkey is seeking more UAE investment in artificial intelligence amid a strengthening of ties between the two countries.
“The UAE is positioning [itself] as a hub for AI investments and we see a similar potential for Turkey. There are tangible outcomes already and there will be more,” Burak Daglioglu, president of the Investment Office of the Presidency of Turkey, told reporters in Istanbul on Wednesday.
Turkey has a “nice pipeline of infrastructure projects”, including data centres, connectivity and renewable energy capacity to attract investments in the AI field, he added.
UAE and Turkey trade and investment ties have surged after the two countries signed the Comprehensive Economic Partnership Agreement, also known as Cepa, in 2023.
There have been several investment agreements spanning different sectors including technology, finance, manufacturing and infrastructure development.
This week, Dubai Islamic Bank signed a $150 million sharia-compliant financing agreement with Turkcell, Turkey’s telecoms and technology services provider, to support the company’s continuing investments in digital infrastructure.
The five-year deal will enable Turkcell to advance critical infrastructure in areas such as data centres, cloud technologies and renewable energy, DIB said on Wednesday.
Last month, G42’s Khazna also announced plans to build an AI-capable data centre in Turkey, with a potential capacity of up to 100 megawatts, after securing a site in Ankara. The Abu Dhabi-based company intends to continue investing in Turkey and expand its data centre network, following the completion of the new site, it said last month.
Turkey is also looking to attract UAE investments in sectors such as HealthTech, renewable energy and manufacturing, Mr Daglioglu said.
In 2022, Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan made his first official visit to the UAE in almost a decade to strengthen ties with the Emirates. President Sheikh Mohamed visited Turkey at the end of 2021.
The UAE's non-oil trade with Turkey grew by 11.5 per cent on an annual basis to Dh148.9 billion ($40.54 billion) last year, official data shows.
“The most important development in the recent years was the free trade agreement between the two countries because it paved the way for a larger trade volume,” Mr Daglioglu said.
“After trade, the opportunity for investment is also higher. In the following years, the investment pipeline from UAE to Turkey will be growing.”
It’s not just the UAE companies that are investing in Turkey, after the free trade agreement, “Turkish companies have started investing in UAE as well”, he added.
Last year, the total UAE investments to Turkey was $307 million, while Turkey’s investments in the UAE totalled $576 million, according to data provided by the Turkey Investment Office.
Since 2002, the UAE has made $5.9 billion worth of investments into Turkey, while Turkey’s investments into the UAE during the same period totalled $2.4 billion, the data shows.
There were 604 Emirati companies operating in Turkey by the middle of last year.
Turkey, whose economy is expected to grow by 2.7 per cent this year, is also focusing on boosting start-up ecosystem, Mr Daglioglu said.
They brought in new legislations, supported start-ups with funding and encouraged more sovereign wealth funds to invest.
“We have successful start-ups, not focusing on exits … the previous trend was make an exit to a larger local player. Now, Turkish companies are becoming regional players,” Mr Daglioglu said.
In 2022, Abu Dhabi's holding company ADQ and Turkey Wealth Fund formed a new $300 million technology fund to invest in start-ups in Turkey.
Energy and utilities, health care and life sciences, food and agriculture, mobility and logistics, financial services, and education were the sectors that the fund targeted to invest.
Company Profile
Name: Thndr
Started: 2019
Co-founders: Ahmad Hammouda and Seif Amr
Sector: FinTech
Headquarters: Egypt
UAE base: Hub71, Abu Dhabi
Current number of staff: More than 150
Funds raised: $22 million
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The specs: 2019 Infiniti QX50
Price, base: Dh138,000 (estimate)
Engine: 2.0L, turbocharged, in-line four-cylinder
Transmission: Continuously variable transmission
Power: 268hp @ 5,600rpm
Torque: 380Nm @ 4,400rpm
Fuel economy: 6.7L / 100km (estimate)
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%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EDirector%3A%C2%A0%3C%2Fstrong%3EHayao%20Miyazaki%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3EStarring%3A%3C%2Fstrong%3E%C2%A0Soma%20Santoki%2C%20Masaki%20Suda%2C%20Ko%20Shibasaki%3C%2Fp%3E%0A%3Cp%3E%3Cstrong%3ERating%3A%20%3C%2Fstrong%3E5%2F5%3C%2Fp%3E%0A
MATCH INFO
Barcelona 2
Suarez (10'), Messi (52')
Real Madrid 2
Ronaldo (14'), Bale (72')
The biog
Favourite car: Ferrari
Likes the colour: Black
Best movie: Avatar
Academic qualifications: Bachelor’s degree in media production from the Higher Colleges of Technology and diploma in production from the New York Film Academy
In Full Flight: A Story of Africa and Atonement
John Heminway, Knopff
'The worst thing you can eat'
Trans fat is typically found in fried and baked goods, but you may be consuming more than you think.
Powdered coffee creamer, microwave popcorn and virtually anything processed with a crust is likely to contain it, as this guide from Mayo Clinic outlines:
Baked goods - Most cakes, cookies, pie crusts and crackers contain shortening, which is usually made from partially hydrogenated vegetable oil. Ready-made frosting is another source of trans fat.
Snacks - Potato, corn and tortilla chips often contain trans fat. And while popcorn can be a healthy snack, many types of packaged or microwave popcorn use trans fat to help cook or flavour the popcorn.
Fried food - Foods that require deep frying — french fries, doughnuts and fried chicken — can contain trans fat from the oil used in the cooking process.
Refrigerator dough - Products such as canned biscuits and cinnamon rolls often contain trans fat, as do frozen pizza crusts.
Creamer and margarine - Nondairy coffee creamer and stick margarines also may contain partially hydrogenated vegetable oils.
Conflict, drought, famine
Estimates of the number of deaths caused by the famine range from 400,000 to 1 million, according to a document prepared for the UK House of Lords in 2024.
It has been claimed that the policies of the Ethiopian government, which took control after deposing Emperor Haile Selassie in a military-led revolution in 1974, contributed to the scale of the famine.
Dr Miriam Bradley, senior lecturer in humanitarian studies at the University of Manchester, has argued that, by the early 1980s, “several government policies combined to cause, rather than prevent, a famine which lasted from 1983 to 1985. Mengistu’s government imposed Stalinist-model agricultural policies involving forced collectivisation and villagisation [relocation of communities into planned villages].
The West became aware of the catastrophe through a series of BBC News reports by journalist Michael Buerk in October 1984 describing a “biblical famine” and containing graphic images of thousands of people, including children, facing starvation.
Band Aid
Bob Geldof, singer with the Irish rock group The Boomtown Rats, formed Band Aid in response to the horrific images shown in the news broadcasts.
With Midge Ure of the band Ultravox, he wrote the hit charity single Do They Know it’s Christmas in December 1984, featuring a string of high-profile musicians.
Following the single’s success, the idea to stage a rock concert evolved.
Live Aid was a series of simultaneous concerts that took place at Wembley Stadium in London, John F Kennedy Stadium in Philadelphia, the US, and at various other venues across the world.
The combined event was broadcast to an estimated worldwide audience of 1.5 billion.
Springsteen: Deliver Me from Nowhere
Director: Scott Cooper
Starring: Jeremy Allen White, Odessa Young, Jeremy Strong
Rating: 4/5
Bugatti Chiron Super Sport - the specs:
Engine: 8.0-litre quad-turbo W16
Transmission: 7-speed DSG auto
Power: 1,600hp
Torque: 1,600Nm
0-100kph in 2.4seconds
0-200kph in 5.8 seconds
0-300kph in 12.1 seconds
Top speed: 440kph
Price: Dh13,200,000
Bugatti Chiron Pur Sport - the specs:
Engine: 8.0-litre quad-turbo W16
Transmission: 7-speed DSG auto
Power: 1,500hp
Torque: 1,600Nm
0-100kph in 2.3 seconds
0-200kph in 5.5 seconds
0-300kph in 11.8 seconds
Top speed: 350kph
Price: Dh13,600,000
Profile
Co-founders of the company: Vilhelm Hedberg and Ravi Bhusari
Launch year: In 2016 ekar launched and signed an agreement with Etihad Airways in Abu Dhabi. In January 2017 ekar launched in Dubai in a partnership with the RTA.
Number of employees: Over 50
Financing stage: Series B currently being finalised
Investors: Series A - Audacia Capital
Sector of operation: Transport
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'The Batman'
Stars:Robert Pattinson
Director:Matt Reeves
Rating: 5/5
Company%20profile
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