The Kuika AI Summit, held in Istanbul on October 1, 2025, brought together business leaders, IT decision-makers, and digital transformation professionals from various sectors across Turkey. The day-long event centered around a single message: AI-powered intelligent systems are no longer optional—they're a prerequisite for staying competitive.
Vision: The Formula for Winning
Kuika Chairman of the Board Süreyya Ciliv took a broad perspective on the transformation ahead for the business world in his keynote address. He shared concrete examples from his career, spanning from his role in the global management of Microsoft Office to his leadership at Turkcell, where he grew the company's value from $6 billion to $28 billion.
Ciliv's message was clear: Technologies change, but the fundamentals of business don't. The goal is always sustainable, profitable growth. He broke down the formula for reaching that goal into two components: Intelligent Systems and innovative leadership.
"Companies that rely on being big, stay put, and move slowly get left behind. Those that are fast, innovative, and team players win," said Ciliv, emphasizing that the era stretching from the rise of the internet to the Fourth Industrial Revolution has now given way to the age of AI. He pointed out that 98 percent of banking transactions in Turkey are conducted through mobile channels and that more than half of Fortune 500 companies' sales come from e-commerce, delivering the message that "companies that missed the internet no longer exist."
Ciliv noted that artificial intelligence was inaccurately translated into Turkish as "yapay zeka" (artificial intelligence), when its true meaning is "systems that learn from data." Citing Gartner's finding that 80 percent of software projects fail to meet business expectations, he stated that the solution lies in rapid development platforms like Kuika. He shared examples where work previously done by 80 people was reduced to 8 through intelligent systems.
Kuika AI Platform: Speed, Transparency, and Independence
Kuika Technology Deputy General Manager Türenç Engin and the technical team introduced the platform's new features through live demos. Engin laid out what sets Kuika apart from other platforms: Kuika is not a black-box system. Code generated in widely used languages like React, Kotlin, SwiftUI, C#, and Python is delivered directly to the customer. Companies can move this code into their own DevOps pipelines, run it in on-premise environments, or deploy it on Kuika Cloud with a single click whenever they choose.
This approach eliminates the biggest concern with black-box platforms: the risk of vendor lock-in. Even if you stop using the platform, all the applications you've developed up to that point remain yours.
The standout innovations on the platform side were as follows:
- The Text-to-App feature makes it possible to turn an idea into a working prototype within minutes. Users detail their app concept by conversing with the AI, and the system automatically generates everything from database tables to screen designs. A direct solution to Ciliv's T0/T12 problem: your need materializes instantly, right when you have it.
- AI Actions add artificial intelligence capabilities to applications. Over 20 ready-made templates are offered, including resume parsing, text summarization, and sentiment analysis. If those aren't enough, you can create your own functions with the Custom AI Action Generator.
- The RAG (Retrieval Augmented Generation) service enables companies to build a secure knowledge base fed by their own documents. By integrating various data sources such as Google Drive, Amazon S3, YouTube, or local resources, it generates company-specific accurate responses that general LLMs cannot produce.
- AI Agents were the event's most exciting announcement. Using the MCP (Model Context Protocol) standard, agents can solve complex tasks with integrated external systems. They determine which tool to use on their own and automatically manage data transfer between steps.
- On the BPM (Business Process Management) side, innovations included generating micro-applications from process designs with a single click, consolidating these applications into a single portal through Shell App architecture, and natively integrating AI Actions into processes.
The Kuika Cloud session also showcased the platform's new cloud environment, complete with auto-scaling and enterprise-grade infrastructure capabilities.
KuikApps: Packaged Solution Speed with Custom-Built Flexibility
Kuika General Manager Stefano Tito described a critical step in the platform's evolution. He shared that they noticed customers were constantly developing the same applications—leave requests, travel expenses, CRM, procurement—and that this observation gave birth to the KuikApps product catalog.
KuikApps' positioning is clear: combining the speed and cost advantages of buying a packaged solution with the flexibility of custom development. You get the ready-made application—80 percent of it meets your needs—and you customize the remaining 20 percent on the Kuika platform to suit your requirements.
Within this framework, Kuika HR stood out as an end-to-end human resources solution. An internal company portal, organizational chart, recruitment, personnel management, performance evaluation, career planning, and training modules are all offered under one roof.
Procurement Success Story: Akçelik
Hakan Çelik, Director of Digital Transformation and New Technologies at Akçelik, described their procurement transformation with Kuika. He painted the classic picture: the ERP system hitting a wall beyond a certain point, the entire post-request process running on email, and suppliers not being included in the process digitally.
He shared that they chose Kuika at the end of their research process and are currently actively using their B2B e-commerce platform, employee portal, and procurement management modules. Çelik's emphasis was significant: In digital transformation, the most critical factor—even before the right technology—is executive trust and ownership.
Customer Experiences: Cross-Industry Transformation
The richest segment of the event was the customer panels, where decision-makers from various industries took the stage, moderated by Deputy General Manager of Customer Success Özge Akbaba. Cem Kahramanoğlu from Yeşilova Holding, Filiz Gülay from Tirsan Kardan, Önder Özberk from Kınay Logistics, and Salih Demirtaş from Penti shared their own digital transformation journeys and the results they achieved with Kuika.
In the customer success story session, Ceyhun Araz, Board Member of Kuika and Norm Holding, and Mehmet Enis Çetiner, General Manager of Kaplanlar Soğutma, shared the details of their transformation processes.
Intelligent Systems: Optimization with System Optima
System Optima, the other pillar of the Kuika ecosystem, took the stage with its intelligent optimization solutions. System Optima General Manager Aydın Tanrıverdi described the solutions the company offers through data modeling and optimization algorithms. Ceren Alaca Bayındır from Avrasya Tunnel and Zehra Filiz Ünlü from Unifree Duty Free shared the results they achieved with System Optima in their own operations.
Ecosystem Partners: MEXT and FaAgile
Barış Arıkan, Group Director of Sales and Marketing at MEXT, described MEXT's mission in the field of artificial intelligence as Turkey's first European Digital Innovation Hub. He explained how MEXT, which runs live production at its digital factories in Ataşehir, guides industrial companies on their AI transformation journey.
FaAgile founder Eren Özdemir reminded the audience that AI transformation is not just about technology—it requires organizational culture change. Citing Gartner data showing that approximately 90 percent of AI transformation projects end in failure, he emphasized that the root cause is treating AI as a project. Özdemir's recommendation was clear: AI must be embedded in the company's DNA and not remain solely the responsibility of one department or IT.
Conclusion: It's Time to Build Your Intelligent Systems
Kuika AI Summit 2025 demonstrated the difference between buying technology and achieving real transformation through concrete examples. Süreyya Ciliv's closing words summed up the day: "With Kuika, we're not just selling a software platform. We're inventing alongside our customers as partners, driving the business forward together."
The success stories shared by companies of different sizes and from different industries showed the tangible results of this partnership model. From retail to manufacturing, logistics to finance, the common thread across every sector was the same: the right platform, the right leadership, and the courage to take action.
It's time to build your intelligent systems with Kuika.
