The Project Team and representatives from Ege Teknopark, Ege University, EGIAD, and the Ministry of Industry and Technology of the Republic of Türkiye made the study visit in the week commencing 29th May to see at first-hand how Ireland has become an internationally recognized success supporting Deep-Tech Start-up businesses. The overall aims were to compare the Irish ecosystem with the situation in Türkiye, identify good practices and innovative solutions in supporting businesses and to develop fruitful relationships and potential cooperation in the Deep-Tech area between Irish stakeholders and Ege University, Ege Teknopark and EGIAD.
The visit was hosted by Enterprise Ireland (EI), the Irish Government’s agency tasked with supporting innovative deep-tech enterprises at each stage of their path towards commercialization. The Turkish delegation had the opportunity to explore the thriving national innovation ecosystem with the key EI staff members responsible, Senior Development Expert Michael O’Dea, National Programmes Manager Paula Carroll, and Entrepreneurship & HPSU Department Manager Anna Marie Turley. The day concluded with a very interesting meeting with senior managers and tenants of Dogpatch Labs (DL). Based in a restored heritage building at the heart of the Irish capital Dublin, DL are a prominent player in the national innovation ecosystem and a well-known commercial start-up hub which is currently home to over 500 start-ups and growing tech-based businesses.
The remainder of the week focused on university support for Deep-Tech Start-ups as this is closest to the aims of Ege Teknopark’s project. It began with a visit to Trinity College Dublin (TCD), Ireland’s oldest university spanning 400 years and today internationally renowned for its academic excellence and global standing in science and technology. The Turkish delegation met key staff responsible for Start-up Development and Research Commercialisation. Discussions focused on TCD’s exceptional entrepreneurial programmes and their extensive support for academic ‘spin-out’ and ‘spin-in’ businesses.
In a similar vein, the delegation also had an important meeting at University College Dublin (UCD). Here the focus was more on the commercialisation aspects of research results and the crucial role of UCD’s Research Support Office in assisting university ‘spin-out’ and ‘spin-in’ businesses.
The itinerary also included a visit to the offices of Frontline Ventures – the leading Irish player in the ecosystem supporting High-Tech and Deep-tech start-ups through their investment and investor access initiatives. The session covered the substantial funding arrangements they have developed specifically to support outputs from the technology and innovation capacity of Irish universities.
The delegation also attended the Dublin Tech Summit; a prominent annual event that brings together representatives from various European and global technology hubs. The summit consisted of a series of talks given by prominent players engaged in the deep-Tech element of the Irish innovation ecosystem, along with an exhibition of Deep-Tech Start-up businesses. The most notable aspects of the event were the rapidly growing focus on Artificial Intelligence (AI) and its widening application across all industry and business sectors, and the remaining heavy emphasis on ICT-based innovation evidenced in the deep-Tech businesses on show.
The visit concluded with a debriefing workshop, led by a senior representative of International Development Ireland Ltd, the contractor involved in delivering the Ege D-Tech Project. The workshop involved the whole delegation in sharing their thoughts and feedback from the meetings so that the elements of good practice could be effectively implemented within the Ege D-Tech project. Overall, it was felt that Türkiye offers a very similar range of support, but the Irish system had been established for much longer and therefore had stronger networking between the various agencies concerned. Most of the organizations visited were envious of Ege Teknopark’s new prototyping facility which was seen by most as a unique feature in providing start-up assistance.
The Study Visit concluded with broader knowledge and gained experience in managing and operating a system for Deep-tech support, strengthened international connections and a shared commitment to further support innovation and collaboration in the Turkish deep-tech sector.
The Ege D-Tech Project is being implemented by Ege Teknopark as part of the Competitive Sectors Programme of the Ministry of Industry and Technology of the Republic of Türkiye. The Project is realised within the framework of financial cooperation between The Republic of Türkiye and the European Union.
