EVENTS

DEİK/Turkey-U.S. Business Council California Committee organized two events in San Francisco and Los Angeles between 24-26 May 2017. The events, which are a first for the newly established California Committee, aimed to institute the first connection with the region and were good opportunities to meet potential counterparts and cooperation partners.

Organized by the DEİK/Turkey-U.S. Business Council and ODTU Teknokent T-Jump, the San Francisco-Turkey Tech Summit took place on May 24^th, at the California Academy of Sciences in San Francisco, CA. The summit was planned solely for participants from the tech industry and investors, with an aim to create a common understanding between the two regions and to establish a platform on which the cooperation atmosphere can prosper.

The talking points of the summit can be summarized as follows.

- Addressing the respective IT ecosystems of San Francisco and Turkey
- Communicating how well structured the Turkish IT and start-up ecosystem is to U.S. investors and possible business partners, and emphasizing the possible joint opportunities at both regions
- Encouraging companies at the scale-up level to further expand their operations to U.S. and promote possible partnership opportunities

Los Angeles – Turkey Business and Networking Reception, organized by the DEİK/Turkey-U.S. Business Council in cooperation with the Turkey Los Angeles Consulate General and Los Angeles Area Chamber of Commerce, took place on May 25^th, at the Official Residence of the Consul General of Turkey to Los Angeles. The reception brought together many guests from the Los Angeles area and Turkey together in a welcoming and pro-business environment. Consul General of the Republic of Turkey in Los Angeles H.E. R. Gülru Gezer, TAİK Chairman Ekim Alptekin and Los Angeles Area Chamber of Commerce President and CEO Gary L. Toebben delivered their welcoming remarks at the reception. Following the speeches, a short screening of the coveted “Ayla” movie took place. “Ayla” movie chronicles the heartbreaking story of a little girl and a Turkish soldier in 1950, amidst the ravages of the Korean War. The movie offers a touching perspective on the woes of war and portrays the values on which the historic Turkish-American alliance lies on. Following the screening lead actor Cade Carradine and producer Mustafa Uslu took the stage to deliver their remarks.

TAİK delegation visited the SpaceX facilities on May 26^th in Hawthorne, CA. SpaceX, founded in 2002, aims to revolutionize space travel for humans, conducts research and develops technologies to enable the humankind to become a multi-planet species. TAIK delegation was given a briefing on the operations of the facilities and had private tour led by top executives of the company.