TÜBİTAK | The Scientific and Technological Research Council of Türkiye

TÜBİTAK (The Scientific and Technological Research Council of Türkiye) is the country’s leading public institution responsible for supporting scientific research, technological development, and innovation-driven entrepreneurship. Established to strengthen Türkiye’s research and innovation capacity, TÜBİTAK designs and implements funding programs for universities, research centers, startups, and industry, playing a central role in transforming knowledge into economic and societal value. TÜBİTAK is headquartered in Ankara, operating through affiliated institutes and nationwide program mechanisms.

Entrepreneurship support is a strategic focus area for TÜBİTAK, particularly through the BiGG (Individual Young Entrepreneur – 1812) Program, which targets technology-based, innovative startups at the idea and pre-seed stages. BiGG 1812 combines grant-based seed support with an investment-oriented component, enabling selected startups to access early-stage financing alongside commercialization and company formation support. The program prioritizes areas such as deep tech, digital technologies, health, mobility, energy, and advanced manufacturing, and functions as one of Türkiye’s primary public entry points for science- and technology-driven entrepreneurship.

A defining feature of the BiGG 1812 program is TÜBİTAK’s structured cooperation with accelerators, incubators, technoparks, universities, and private sector partners, which act as BiGG Implementing Organizations. These organizations provide entrepreneurs with pre-incubation, mentoring, business modeling, validation, and investment readiness services, and support startups in connecting with investment funds and co-investment mechanisms associated with the BiGG framework. Through this ecosystem-based implementation model, TÜBİTAK strengthens the pipeline from research and innovation to investable startup ventures.