There are important examples of success in the field of technology in Turkey. However, these successes are limited to a few areas; they cannot spread to other sectors and create a permanent transformation. This is because a functioning system and an environment of trust are needed.
Technology is the transformation of an idea into a product that works in the field. It is what works, not what is talked about; it speeds up a business, solves a problem, scales and generates saleable value. Science is the source of it. “Why?” is the disciplined answer to the question. Science produces knowledge, technology brings that knowledge to life.
Okay. “product brain” what is this thing we call? The intelligence of the product. Its software, algorithm, sensor, control system, calibration. This is the part that makes the product valuable, expensive and exportable. Producing the body is labor. The brain of the product is born in the laboratory. Science produces knowledge, technology turns that knowledge into a product. If there is no science, there is no original technology; at most, imitation.
Turkey has both intelligence and labor. The problem is this. There is no organization in this country to turn intelligence into products. We produce but we cannot get rich because we do not produce the brains of the product. The brains of the product still come from outside. There is R&D, there are reports, but the productization chain is broken. After the prototype, the work is blocked.
Medical devices, for example, show this reality very clearly. We make the body of the device, but not the brain. The sensor is outsourced, the electronic card is outsourced, the software is outsourced, the calibration is outsourced. The result is obvious. We appear to have produced the device, but the real profit is made by foreign companies.
Another problem is continuity and speed. Technology is not a short job; it is not finished in 6 months, sometimes it takes 3-5 years, sometimes 10 years. Trial and error is required, mistakes are normal. But with us, the goal changes, the team disperses, the direction of the organization changes; everyone starts all over again. On top of that, the processes are heavy. Tender, procurement, contract, payment, report... While technology demands speed, the system is slow. That's why we can't move forward; we wear out young teams and new companies from the very beginning.
Technology does not grow only in the laboratory; it grows by order. In the world, the state is often the first customer of technology. They make a pilot purchase, try it in the field, the product matures. In our country, the public “who gives the cheapest” to see if it's worth it. New technology is not cheap at the beginning. If the state is not the first customer, local technology cannot breathe.
The university is after academic publications, the industry is after costs. This is why there is no joint product. Industry does not take risks, it buys ready-made technology from outside; local development requires time and error, and we do not have the patience for this.
In Japan, for example, they have established a working line between universities and industry. The researcher can work at the same table with the company, the state runs programs ranging from basic research to commercialization, and there is a legal basis for the transformation of the knowledge coming out of the university into a product.
And the most burning issue is human beings. Young people are leaving. Engineers are leaving. Physicians are leaving. “How do I go abroad?” It's no longer a dream, it's a plan. This country is losing its trained people. Worse, those who remain are giving up. “Not worth the trouble” the moment the sentence is uttered, the technology ends.
The solution to this “more budget” "I can't just say 'I'm a scholar'. We have to make the university not only a place that produces academic publications, but also the beginning of the line leading to products. Research will not stay in the laboratory; it will go down to the prototype, the product and the field. The university and industry will look at the same target and work at the same table. The state will be the first customer in this process; the domestic product will take to the field, develop and grow.
The problem is not the lack of technology; it is the failure to build the system that makes technology grow.
Technology does not grow with words. It grows with the system.