Okan Bayülgen, born in 1964 in Istanbul, is a television presenter, actor, director, and photographer. He graduated from the Theatre Department of the Mimar Sinan University State Conservatory. He became a cult figure with his late-night shows such as Zaga, Televizyon Makinası, and Disko Kralı, and has reached wide audiences through his stage, radio, and television projects.
Burhan Özdemir completed his undergraduate studies in Civil Engineering at Dumlupınar University in 2000 and earned his Master’s degree in Earthquake Engineering from the University of Manchester Institute of Science and Technology (UMIST) in the United Kingdom. During his graduate studies, he published technical articles in the fields of advanced structural technologies and earthquake engineering. He is currently in the dissertation phase of his PhD at the Middle East and Islamic Countries Research Institute at Marmara University. Between 2002 and 2005, he worked as a Design Engineer in the Nuclear Energy Department of Jacobs Engineering—one of the leading technical consultancy firms in the United States—based in the United Kingdom. He took part as Project Manager in the construction and commissioning projects of the nuclear stations of BNFL (British Nuclear Fuel Limited). Burhan Özdemir was elected President at the 28th Ordinary General Assembly of MÜSİAD.
Aikman graduated from Worcester College, Oxford University, in 1965 and earned his PhD in Russian and Chinese history from the University of Washington in 1979. From 1971 to 1994, he worked as a journalist for Time magazine, during which he reported on nearly all major historical events of the era.
Brett King is an Australian futurist, author, and the co-founder of Moven, a mobile banking startup originally based in New York. Known globally as an influential figure in the financial services sector, King’s book Bank 4.0 was evaluated by an independent panel audited by PricewaterhouseCoopers and was awarded the 2019 Best Book Written by a Foreign Author in Russia. In recognition of his contributions to the industry, he was included in the Fintech Hall of Fame in 2020.
With more than 20 years of experience in the technology and banking sectors, Işıl Kılınç Gürtuna was appointed as the General Manager of IBM Turkey as of July 1, 2023. Gürtuna joined IBM Turkey in 2020 and previously held leadership roles in digital and commercial group clients, ecosystem management, and IBM’s cloud sales strategy. Since 2022, she has served as IBM Turkey’s Technology Sales Director, focusing on client management, data and artificial intelligence, sustainability, hybrid cloud, and automation/integration solutions. In her new role, Gürtuna leads IBM’s country operations with a focus on expanding the reach of hybrid cloud and artificial intelligence technologies and growing IBM’s digital footprint in the Turkish market.
Joey Jiang serves as Vice President at IAT Automobile Technology Co., Ltd., an automotive research and development company based in China. Focusing on collaboration opportunities in international automotive markets, Jiang contributes to his company’s involvement in technological transitions between the European and Chinese markets. Since 2021, he has been engaged in international business development and consultancy roles at IAT.
Jan Haizmann is the Founder and Senior Partner of Correggio Consulting, based in the United Arab Emirates. He has over 25 years of expertise in energy wholesale and commodity markets
Hakan Çelik has been a columnist for Posta newspaper since 1997 and has also served as the newspaper’s Ankara Representative for the past six years. Continuing his work in music as well, Çelik reaches his audience every Thursday evening on TRT Radio 3 with the program Tren Yolculuğu, which he prepares and hosts.
Born in 1980 in Karaman, Arda Ermut graduated from the Department of Political Science and International Relations at Boğaziçi University in 2004. In 2005, he began his career as an advisor for Press and Public Relations at the Prime Ministry. In 2015, he was appointed President of the Investment Support and Promotion Agency of Turkey, a position he held until 2020. Between 2019 and 2021, he served as a Member of the Board of Directors at Turkish Airlines and was one of the three members of the airline’s Executive Committee. He served at Türk Telekom between 2022 and 2024, and on May 2, 2024, he was elected as a Member of the Board of Directors at Turkcell during the Ordinary General Assembly Meeting for the fiscal year 2023. Arda Ermut also serves as a Member of the Board of Directors of Türkiye Katılım Sigorta—established by the Turkey Wealth Fund—and as Chairman of the Board of the Istanbul Finance Center Management Company. Ermut previously served as a Member of the Board of Directors at the Turkey Wealth Fund between 2018 and 2020, and as of March 2021, he has been appointed as the General Manager and a Member of the Board of Directors of the Turkey Wealth Fund.
İlber Ortaylı, born in 1947, is a Turkish historian specializing in Ottoman and modern Turkish history. He graduated from the Faculty of Political Sciences in Ankara and completed his master’s degree in Chicago under the supervision of Halil İnalcık. He has taught at various universities and served as the Director of the Topkapı Palace Museum from 2005 to 2012. Ortaylı has conveyed history to wide audiences through numerous books and articles.
She began working at Teksa A.Ş. in 1988. After serving in various positions within the company, she moved to Bossa T.A.Ş. in 1995, known as the first industrial initiative of the Sabancı Group. Between 2003 and 2008, she served as a board member of Bossa T.A.Ş. and Yünsa A.Ş. In 2006, she founded Mediasa Media Group, a company operating in media, retail, tourism, healthcare, maritime, construction, and the arts. She is the Co-Founder and Vice Chairperson of the Board of Demsa Group.
In 1982, he became a specialist in psychiatry at GATA. After serving as a hospital physician in Erzincan and Çorlu, he became an Assistant Professor (1988) and Associate Professor (1990) at GATA Haydarpaşa. He also served as a clinical director. He was promoted to Colonel (1993) and Professor (1996). He left the Turkish Armed Forces in 1996. Between 1996 and 1999, he worked as a faculty member at Yüzüncü Yıl University and served as an expert for the Council of Forensic Medicine. He retired voluntarily. In 1998, he obtained the Turkey representation of the Memory Center of America. He currently serves as the Founding Rector of Üsküdar University and as the Chairman of the Board of NPİSTANBUL Brain Hospital, which began operating in 2006 as Turkey’s first neuropsychiatry hospital and, since 2017, continues its activities as Turkey’s first and Europe’s second Brain Hospital.
Dr. Naoki Qayyim Yamamoto, born in 1989 in Okayama, Japan, studied Christian Studies at Doshisha University. He currently serves as the Director of the Sakura Center for Japanese Studies at Ibn Haldun University and also works as a faculty member at the Institute of Turkic Studies at Marmara University.
He graduated from the Department of Political Science and Public Administration at Middle East Technical University. Kaymaz currently serves as the International Government Business Director at Axiom Space. Previously, he held roles at the Investment Office of the Presidency of the Republic of Turkey, including U.S. Country Director, Chief Project Director, and Director of Economic and Sectoral Research.
Reshad Strik, born on June 22, 1981 in Canberra, is an Australian actor, host, and producer of Bosnian descent. He gained international recognition for his roles in productions such as The Hills Have Eyes 2 (2007), Newcastle (2008), and Don’t Look Up (2009). In Turkey, he portrayed Zülfü in TRT’s series Filinta (2014) and Claudius/Ömer in Diriliş: Ertuğrul (2015). He also hosts the program Ailenin Yeni Üyesi on TRT Belgesel.
He graduated with a bachelor’s degree from the Department of Electrical and Electronics Engineering at Dokuz Eylül University. He began his career in 2004 as Marketing Chief at İsbak AŞ, later serving as Commercial Manager and R&D Manager. In 2011, he founded his own startup focused on smart city technologies, which went on to receive investment from one of Turkey’s largest conglomerates. During this period, he developed Turkey’s first mobile passenger information system along with other innovative smart city solutions. As of September 2021, he served as Deputy Director of Business Development at TÜBİTAK BİLGEM. Following his tenure at TÜBİTAK, he was appointed as the General Manager of National Technology as of November 18, 2024.
Volkan Demiroğlu was appointed as the CEO of DHL Express Turkey as of July 17, 2023. He began his career 22 years ago in customer service and subsequently held roles such as team leader and supervisor, followed by Customs Manager in 2007, Istanbul Gateway Manager in 2009, and Customer Service Director on the Turkey Executive Management Team in 2018. Until his CEO appointment, he served as Vice President of Operations between 2021 and 2023. Demiroğlu plays a critical role in Turkey’s logistics and global transportation chain strategies.
Hans Neff has served as a consultant and system integrator in the telecommunications and information technology sectors for more than 30 years. He joined the Chinese technology company ZTE Corporation in 2014, was identified as an executive reporting to the board in 2016, and has served as Senior Director of the CTO Group since 2017. His involvement in multinational and multi-vendor technical infrastructure projects demonstrates his strategic perspective in telecommunications technologies.
Turan Manafzade (May 25, 1991, Baku) is an Azerbaijani-born pianist, conductor, and composer. In 2017, she was awarded the title of Honored Artist of the Republic of Azerbaijan. She began her musical education at a young age, has performed concerts as a pianist in numerous countries, and has also taken an active role in orchestral conducting. Manafzade is one of the prominent figures in the Turkish-Azerbaijani cultural sphere.
After graduating from the Department of Electrical and Electronics Engineering at Bilkent University, Erdem İnan completed his Master’s degree in Innovation and Technology Economics & Management at Bocconi University. He began his professional career at Rocket Internet and later held managerial positions in leading technology companies such as Peak Games. Since 2017, Erdem İnan has been responsible for growth at Trendyol Group, where he leads various teams including marketplace, customer experience, CRM & digital engagement, data science, digital marketing, and marketing communications.
Züleyha Ortak was born in 1987 in Istanbul. From August 2015 to January 2016, she hosted the program İyi Fikir on TRT 1, and she continues her career as a folk music vocalist. During her conservatory education, she worked as an assistant to Zülfü Livaneli, whom she considers her first master.
Yavuz Emir Beyribey
