The “CERN–Türkiye Knowledge Transfer Summit” was held on September 30 – October 1, 2025, hosted by Istinye University.
The summit aimed to bring together technologies developed at CERN that serve applications in areas such as health, digitalization, and environment with relevant stakeholders in Türkiye. In addition, it sought to provide an important opportunity for CERN’s Knowledge Transfer Group to share international best practices and for Turkish Technology Transfer Offices to exchange experiences.
Marking the 10th anniversary of Türkiye’s associate membership at the European Organization for Nuclear Research (CERN), the summit was jointly organized by CERN, Istinye University, MLPCARE, and TOBB, with TENMAK, TÜSEB, TÜBİTAK, TÜRKPATENT, TOBB-ETÜ, the Turkish Physical Society, Informatics Valley, the Technology Commercialization Center, and ISTKA as partner institutions. The opening session on September 30 was attended by representatives of partner institutions, students, and academics.
“Technology transfer is the essence of science”
In his opening remarks, Dr. Muharrem Usta, Chairman of the Board of Trustees of Istinye University, underlined the importance of technology transfer, stating:
“Technology transfer and product development are indispensable to science. The most important role of universities in this field is to create social value. We have embarked on this journey with a great vision of what we can produce in 10 years in scientific output. It is with pride that we witness the remarkable progress of our academics in fundamental sciences, especially in physics.”
“Our university’s work under the umbrella of CERN is highly valuable”
Prof. Dr. Erkan İbiş, Rector of Istinye University, highlighted Türkiye’s scientific contribution to CERN, saying:
“CERN’s agenda is not only to analyze matter and bring forth new technologies. It is also a unique structure for the dissemination of scientific technologies. It is highly valuable that Istinye University is involved in five experiments under the umbrella of CERN.”
Prof. Dr. Serkant Ali Çetin emphasized the opportunities provided to young researchers:
“The work carried out at CERN not only contributes to our understanding of the mysteries of the universe, but also enhances Türkiye’s scientific production capacity and strengthens the international experience of our young researchers.”
“We are working to integrate CERN technologies into Turkish industry”
Dr. Giovanni Anelli, Director of CERN’s Knowledge Transfer Office, explained the process of technology transfer:
“One important focus of this summit is technology transfer. We will be sharing what kind of technologies we are developing at CERN and specifically exploring how we can integrate these technologies into Turkish industry.”
Emphasizing opportunities for collaboration with industry, Alessandro Raimondo, CERN Digital Technologies Representative, added:
“If we can find the right industrial partners for our technology, we can change the world. If we can translate the language of industry into the language of technology, we can make progress on joint projects.”
National institutions’ support
Dr. Merve Taner Camcı, International Relations Coordinator at TENMAK, spoke about the institution’s contributions:
“To date, TENMAK has supported 11 different projects under CERN from 40 of our universities. We aim to support the particle physics infrastructure of our country and contribute to the development of studies and technologies in this field.”
Strong contributions from the industrial and technology ecosystem
Deniz Özer, International Projects Manager at Informatics Valley, underscored the importance of global competitiveness for Turkish industry:
“Our goal at Informatics Valley is to bring our Turkish companies to a strong position in the international arena. Science and technology gain more value as they are shared. We are delighted to participate in the CERN Knowledge Transfer Summit.”
Dr. Önder Kul, General Manager of the Technology Commercialization Center, emphasized Türkiye’s entrepreneurial and industrial potential:
“With a population approaching 86 million, Türkiye is among the most dynamic countries. We have more than 200 universities and over 110 technoparks. Knowledge and technologies developed with CERN will quickly transform into value in our country.”
Dr. Ersin Üresin, Vice President of TÜBİTAK MAM, drew attention to Türkiye’s research infrastructure:
“This summit is a valuable platform to bring our domestically developed technologies to the international stage and to benefit from CERN technologies. Türkiye contributes to CERN not only through its scientific efforts but also through its industrial capacity. Beyond particle physics, we possess research infrastructure spanning life sciences, renewable energy technologies, material sciences, and defense industry. With new collaborations and partnerships, we prioritize transforming knowledge into production that directly supports industry and contributes to society.”
