ERSU ABLAK

Why Turkey and Japan should collaborate more ERSU ABLAK

Why Turkey and Japan should collaborate more?

Turkish people have positive views on Japanese people and culture as they find it both similar and exotic at the same time. According to a public survey in Turkey conducted by the Japanese Foreign Ministry in 2012, 83.2 percent of respondents said relations between Japan and Turkey are “friendly” or “almost friendly.” However, due to the huge physical distance between the two countries I believe that our relations have not been close enough to realize the full potential of what these two countries can achieve if they collaborate.

June 13 2018
The new fintech frontier: Financial health ERSU ABLAK

The new fintech frontier: Financial health

Recently, I had written that the Turkish startup ecosystem is very small compared to other countries such as Germany, Portugal, Israel, the United States, and Canada, etc. However, the growth rate of the ecosystem is promising.

June 06 2018
Revolutionizing movie going ERSU ABLAK

Revolutionizing movie going

One of the things that mentors love to say to entrepreneurs is “think global.” What they mean is that a startup should not just focus on a local market, even at birth. Of course, this piece of advice is rarely kept, as going global is usually feared by entrepreneurs. How can they make it in a market they know so little about while they are still struggling in their home market where they have a good network? This is a question you cannot really know the answer to unless you try.

May 31 2018
Turkish Lira vs. Turkish technology industry ERSU ABLAK

Turkish Lira vs. Turkish technology industry

Lately everyone has been talking about interest rates and the fall of the Turkish Lira against other currencies. These have a few serious consequences on the Turkish ICT industry.

May 23 2018
Still investing in Turkey ERSU ABLAK

Still investing in Turkey

Foreign direct investment (FDI) is one of the key figures that tells us how a certain country is seen by outsiders.

May 16 2018
Is a social media win enough to win elections ERSU ABLAK

Is a social media win enough to win elections?

Two days ago President Tayyip Erdoğan gave the kind of motto to the opposition that the latter was unable to find for a long time: “Enough” or “Alright” (tamam). He said that if citizens tell him “tamam” then he will step down.

May 09 2018
The e-sports federation is one giant step ERSU ABLAK

The e-sports federation is one giant step

Even though I really do not understand all the games and cannot claim I understand everything I watch on Twitch, those who follow my column know I am very keen on e-sports developments in Turkey.

May 02 2018
Elections and fake news ERSU ABLAK

Elections and fake news

In just 60 days we will have presidential elections in Turkey. As there are still many unknowns about the process and the candidates, every bit of information is vital.

April 25 2018
Can Istanbul be like Artvin ERSU ABLAK

Can Istanbul be like Artvin?

What kind of a life we want and how we choose the city we live in are two very separate phenomena. Most people want to live in big cities because they believe the quality of life and probability of earning money is better in mega cities. However, the quality of life indices tell us otherwise in almost every study done.

April 18 2018