Founders Returning Capital to Pivot to AI
Fintech founder Amrish Rau noted a trend of founders who have raised over $100 million returning capital to their investors. According to Rau, these founders are pivoting their ventures to focus on AI, fearing they will miss the current "defining tech cycle."
- Venture capital funding for AI-focused startups has seen a dramatic surge, with global funding reaching $469 billion in 2025, a 47% year-over-year increase. This intense concentration of capital, with AI securing nearly half of all venture investments, is creating immense pressure on founders in other sectors to pivot toward AI to attract funding and talent. - In Turkey, the impact of the global AI trend is evident in recent investment data. In the first nine months of 2025, Turkish startups secured $475 million, with fintech leading in investment volume at $197.9 million. Notably, AI-related ventures accounted for nearly 18% of all transactions over the past five years, a number expected to grow. - The Turkish defense industry is a significant driver of AI adoption, with companies like Roketsan and Aselsan integrating AI into missile guidance systems, autonomous platforms, and drone swarm coordination. This government-backed push into defense tech is creating a pipeline of deeptech talent and commercialization opportunities. - Turkish fintech is also rapidly integrating AI, with a focus on AI-powered digital banking, lending algorithms, and embedded finance solutions. Neobanks like ColendiBank are building their infrastructure around AI from the ground up to offer hyper-personalized services. - The commercialization of deeptech from Turkish universities is being actively encouraged through new venture funds and partnerships. The 'J-START' fund, a collaboration between ALJ and Sabancı Ventures, will prioritize investing in deep-tech startups emerging from academic institutions. Additionally, a partnership between InnovationQuarter and ITU ARI Teknokent aims to accelerate the entry of Turkish deeptech scale-ups into the European market. - On the macroeconomic front, analysts are watching Turkey's inflation and interest rate environment closely. Projections for year-end 2026 inflation range from 21% to 23%, with the central bank's policy rate expected to be around 30%. These figures will significantly influence the fundraising climate for Turkish startups. - Turkey is also making strategic investments in quantum computing, with the launch of its first 5-qubit quantum computer, "QuanT," in late 2024. This initiative, a collaboration between TOBB University of Economics and Technology and the defense firm Aselsan, signals a national strategic focus on developing deeptech capabilities. - In the climatetech sector, Turkey is identified as a middle-income country with high potential, particularly in scalable technologies like solar, wind, and battery storage. The Turkish Energy, Nuclear and Mineral Research Agency (TENMAK) has launched funding calls to support the development of advanced solar and wind projects, requiring collaboration between universities and industrial partners to bring technologies to market.
