Nisanur Genç, a 23-year-old who returned to Türkiye after studying computer science in the U.S., is now leading a project in the field of artificial intelligence.
In an interview with Anadolu Agency (AA) on Friday, Genç, who graduated from the Computer Science Department of the New College of Florida in May 2023, stated that completing her undergraduate education abroad gave her a very different vision.
"I returned because I thought I could benefit my country by using the information that broadened my horizons in my own country, in a job I could take ownership of. Our economy may not be great, we may not be happy with some situations, but I think our country needs engineers like us, young professionals. That's why I returned," said Genç.
Genç, who served as the product manager for Gipi, the latest product of AppFab, which emerged from the company TURK AI, shared the following information about their work: "Gipi is an artificial intelligence friend. Besides being an artificial intelligence friend application, it can also teach you the subjects you want. When you enter the application, you talk to artificial intelligence. It chats with you and takes care of you. When something happens, you can share it with Gipi, and it remembers it."
"One of the most important things for me is that we have more than half a million users from over 170 countries. Being able to address many users, being able to touch everywhere in the world from here, being able to change something in their lives was very important to me," she said.
"Being in Türkiye did not create a problem for me in terms of opening up to the global market. I can contribute something to the development of this business that I have taken ownership of. I have had a say in Gipi's personality, its way of being, its creation, and I have been here from the very beginning, I have been involved in the business. I had a say in every aspect," she added.
Emphasizing that there is new development in the field of artificial intelligence every day and it is starting to be integrated into every aspect of life, Genç stated that she predicts that artificial intelligence will replace social media in the future.
"I believe it will be as common as a smartphone, it will become a tool that is always with us, in our hands. Everyone will have their own artificial intelligence friend, and the latest developments actually prove this a bit more," Genç explained.
"A much nicer thing is that we are currently competing with global giants from Türkiye, and being a part of this is very important to me. We can do this here. We have a lot of talent in Türkiye, and I am sure that our future colleagues will also make a huge contribution in this regard. The field is open, there is much to be done, and there is a need for people to do it."
"The most satisfying aspect of any work is taking ownership of that work. Doing that work is not just based on salary, but with love, believing in it. Because this is what makes the real difference. When you look, what makes us compete with global giants is this," she said.
Noting that she saw very few women around her when she went for her undergraduate studies, Genç expressed that the number of female engineers is increasing but not as much as one might think.
"I actually noticed this deficiency the most. One of the things I wanted was to come back to Türkiye, achieve something, touch the lives of younger people, change something in their lives. My advice to them is, if they can go abroad within the possibilities, they should go, they should definitely improve their languages, but instead of focusing on other things, they should come and build bigger things with the experiences they gain abroad, with the engineers, and the young people who will follow them here, and create the change they want here. Because no one else can do this but us," she said.
Highlighting that Gipi is a starting point for her career and she is very curious about where it will go, Genç said that one of her personal goals is to see where she is going globally while actively participating in the project.
"The future is very exciting, very promising, and the fact that this comes from our country, that we are doing this, gives me a very different hope. I see this in the people around me. I tell everyone about Gipi and I get reactions like, did we, the locals, do this, compared to global giants? Yes, we are achieving something, and I want to continue this. I want to move our country forward in this way, I want to add whatever I can add," Genç added.
