The Past and Present of Türkiye’s Artificial Intelligence Strategy: An Evaluation in the Context of National Artificial Intelligence Strategy and Action Plans

Counts differ because each database indexes a different set of publications. We treat OpenAlex as the canonical count; Google Scholar is not shown (no API, and crawling it violates its ToS).

Artificial intelligence (AI) has emerged as a critical instrument of digital transformation, prompting numerous countries to develop dedicated national strategies in this field. Türkiye’s institutional engagement with AI began in 2019, with the establishment of an AI-related department within the Digital Transformation Office, followed by the announcement of the National Artificial Intelligence Strategy in 2021. This strategy outlines priorities including the strengthening of human resources, the development of legal and ethical frameworks, the expansion of AI-related infrastructure, and the promotion of domestic technologies and international cooperation, all oriented toward enhancing Türkiye’s position in global competition. These policies have been reinforced by subsequent higher-level policy documents and legislation, contributing to a gradual improvement in Türkiye’s standing across international AI readiness indices in recent years. In June 2026, Türkiye announced a new National Artificial Intelligence Action Plan covering the 2026–2030 period, structured around four pillars—recognize, leverage, produce, and govern—that substantially expand the scope of the 2021–2025 Strategy through increased investment in computing infrastructure, domestic language models, and sovereign AI capacity. This study examines the evolution of Türkiye’s AI policy framework from its initial strategy through the most recent action plan, situating these developments within the broader context of international assessments such as the Oxford Government AI Readiness Index 2025 and the European Union’s Artificial Intelligence Act. The findings suggest that while Türkiye has made measurable progress in policy formulation and public-sector digital delivery, persistent deficiencies remain in human capital, computing infrastructure, and AI sector maturity. Sustained progress will therefore depend on continued investment in these areas, alongside the development of policies that anticipate both the opportunities and the risks associated with the advancement of artificial intelligence.