Artificial intelligence policies: The case of Türkiye

In recent years, artificial intelligence (AI) technologies have been rapidly proliferating across many sectors, from transportation and healthcare to agriculture and banking. The number of AI-enabled medical devices has increased, and autonomous vehicles have begun operating in certain cities. While its potential to accelerate scientific discovery has attracted considerable attention, artificial intelligence also entails risks such as bias and discrimination, privacy violations, security issues, unemployment, and economic inequality. With both its opportunities and risks, AI has become a focal point on the policy agendas of many countries. In Türkiye, the National Artificial Intelligence Strategy entered into force in 2021. The aim of this thesis is to comparatively evaluate Türkiye's macro-level policies and strategies in the field of AI technologies, which have gained strategic importance at the global level, with international cases, and to identify key policy components that should be prioritized. As international cases, the European Union, the United States, and China are examined. The findings reveal that Türkiye's current macro-level policies and strategies share significant similarities with international cases. Furthermore, international cases differ in their regulatory frameworks, and Türkiye's approach was analyzed within this framework. The study was also supported by word frequency analysis of selected policy documents. The conclusion includes some examples of best practices that could be beneficial for Türkiye and offers recommendations for the policy development process.