Creative Industries Design and Training Center (ATOM) Opening Ceremony Was Held
The opening ceremony of the "Establishment of Creative Industries Design and Training Center and Capacity Building of the Digital Game Industry in Ankara (ATOM)" project, which is supported by Ankara Development Agency, was held. Within the scope of the project, it was aimed to meet the physical, technical and educational infrastructure needs of young entrepreneurs working in the fields of creative industries, digital games and computer animation. The center is established in an area of approximately 1,000 m2 in the Middle East Technical University (METU) Technopolis and it includes training, laboratory and incubation units on creative industries, especially digital games and computer animation.
The opening of the center realized on 17 April 2023 with the participation of Minister of Industry and Technology Mustafa VARANK, Governor of Ankara Vasip ŞAHİN, Rector of METU Mustafa Verşan KÖK, President of ATO Gürsel BARAN, Secretary General of Ankara Development Agency Cahit ÇELİK.
The Rector of METU and the Chairman of the Board of METU Teknokent, Mustafa Verşan KÖK stated that since its establishment in 2008, more than 500 teams have been incorporated in ATOM and more than 1000 games have been developed at the center. Stating that the physical capacity of ATOM has tripled within the scope of the implemented project with the support of the Ankara Development Agency, Mr. KÖK emphasized that more entrepreneurs will now benefit from ATOM.
Secretary General of Ankara Development Agency Cahit Çelik said, “With the project we have facilitated the access of actors in the digital game and animation industry to the support they need. Thus, we aimed to support the development of the game industry in our region, which is considered as a high-income industry in the developed economies of the world.” He also stated that the center is important for Ankara to become a strategic center in the creative sectors, both at the national and international level.
The Governor of Ankara Vasip ŞAHİN gave information about the activities and support programs of Ankara Development Agency in his speech. Mr. ŞAHİN stated that the digital game industry has reached a significant level of maturity in Ankara and he mentioned the importance of increasing Ankara’s share on high-tech sectors.
In his speech, Minister of Industry and Technology Mustafa VARANK emphasized the importance of technology entrepreneurship and gave information about the research and development environment in Turkey. Mr. VARANK stated that successful studies have been carried out in digital games and educational technologies in our country and mentioned the great progress made in the production of advanced technologies within the scope national technology move.
After the opening speeches, ribbon cutting took place for the opening of the Creative Industries Design and Training Center (ATOM) and Educational Technologies Incubation and Innovation Center (ETKİM). After the ceremony, Minister of Industry and Technology Mustafa VARANK visited the centers and met with entrepreneurs and got information about the work of the teams.