Startups, the driving force of the new economy, have become a significant investment tool. Funds investing in startups often take the form of investment mechanisms established by venture capital firms or corporations. While venture capital firms' investments are primarily aimed at financial returns, corporate firms' investment mechanisms are more focused on supporting the strategic objectives of the companies they operate within.

Global warming and rising input costs are forcing change in the agricultural sector. Digital technologies offer entirely new opportunities for agricultural equipment to best meet these new needs. Innovations such as electric and autonomous tractors are expected to have a positive impact on existing labor and energy costs in the sector. To remain competitive, companies in the sector must quickly adapt to innovation trends in this area.

In practice, free mentoring services provided by volunteer and amateur mentors are implemented without any planning or performance criteria. For the mentoring process to lead teams to success, it is essential that it be carefully planned and the criteria for success established in advance. Lack of mentor experience in this field or the lack of oversight of the process leads to a mutual waste of time and resources.

Recent advances in digital technologies are causing the aviation industry to produce increasingly sophisticated vehicles. The impossibility of a single manufacturer producing all the new technological solutions integrated into aircraft is driving the aviation industry to collaborate with startups that develop these technologies. Open innovation activities reduce the aviation industry's R&D costs and accelerate the commercialization of new products.

The retail sector has recently been one of the sectors most affected by the development of e-commerce. E-commerce channels have come to impact every sector, from the simplest food product to the automobile. Under these circumstances, the retail sector's renewal has become essential. This transformation has led companies in the sector to turn to both intrapreneurship and open innovation to remain competitive.

The finance sector is one of the sectors most affected by the development of digital technologies. Competition between banks, which operate under numerous sectoral regulations, and fintechs, which are largely unaffected by these regulations, has accelerated the need for transformation in this area. Rather than fighting against this transformation, the finance sector has chosen to participate in it and, through its solutions and open innovation efforts, has begun to shape the future of the sector alongside startups.

Every country's startup ecosystem, including Turkey, has its own unique advantages. Investors who don't limit their investment strategies to a single country have the opportunity to make more targeted investments by exploring the unique advantages of different ecosystems. Significant differences in the valuations of startups operating in similar fields across countries can be decisive in their investment decisions.

The defense industry is the leading sector, either at the origin of most new technologies or the one that rapidly puts them into use. Increasing global threats are increasing the demand for the defense industry daily. Today, the defense industry, which produces not only for military purposes but also for security forces mobilized to respond to natural disasters, migration, and other humanitarian operations, cannot be considered independent of the concept of innovation.

The development of e-commerce and the acceleration of supply chains are driving the logistics sector to develop new solutions for speed and pricing. To adapt past operational models to meet current trade volumes, the sector must increasingly utilize digital technologies. Improving customer satisfaction and experience in the face of increasing speed necessitates the sector's development of new business models.

The most important factor that distinguishes mentoring services offered in corporate organizations from other mentoring services is the expectation that project outcomes align with the company's innovation strategies. In this particular case, the mentor has a dual responsibility to both the project team and the senior management of the company implementing the innovation program. It is crucial for the mentor to manage these differing expectations in a way that doesn't erode the motivation of intrapreneurs.

Centers that provide incubation or accelerator services for startups contribute significantly to the development not only of the entrepreneurs themselves but also of the regions they are established in. Recently, innovation centers established by private companies, universities, and local governments enable entrepreneurs living in the region to address the challenges faced by their respective provinces or districts.

Periodic entrepreneurship programs, as well as entrepreneurship centers, are crucial for the development of the startup ecosystem. The number of programs organized by various economic actors, including civil society organizations, is increasing daily. However, the biggest problem in our country is that the vast majority of these programs are similar to each other and offer weak value propositions to entrepreneurs.

The increasing emphasis chemical product customers place on issues like circularity and carbon footprint is pushing chemical companies to transition away from hydrocarbons. The increasing demand for polymers based on recycled and renewable raw materials is driving many companies to make new investments in this area. For the industry to adapt to this change, it is crucial to collaborate with startups to accelerate new product development processes.

Acceleration programs that bring together startups operating in a specific sector are crucial for both enabling the organizing company to adapt more quickly to innovations in its sector and to find new technology suppliers. Within the framework of this open innovation practice, which is widespread in the banking sector in Turkey, numerous incubators and accelerators have been established specifically for startups.

Despite its unique dynamics, the food sector is affected by developments in the agriculture and livestock sectors. Regional tensions, such as the recent Russia-Ukraine incident, can negatively impact the food supply chain. Increasing consumer awareness and expectations in the food sector highlight the need for the sector to continuously monitor innovations in both production and distribution.

Today, the vast majority of companies have moved their business models online. Digital transformation efforts aimed at maintaining workflows and increasing efficiency, and the resulting security threats, are rapidly spreading. Technologies that allow data to be sent between devices online, such as the Internet of Things (IoT), are at increasing risk of becoming a significant cyber threat. It's crucial that new technology projects requiring significant investments are designed with grants and funding in mind in their early stages.

Technological advancements and the impacts of the climate crisis have highlighted the need for effective management of the components that make up a city, especially in densely populated cities. From infrastructure projects to Spatial Information Systems (GIS), from IoT data to the integration of data obtained from UAVs, the optimal management of all this big data, both physically and through cybersecurity efforts, is becoming increasingly crucial. "Smart City" projects that address big data naturally require large budgets, leading them to prioritize grant-funded projects.

The food industry, which directly touches consumers, necessitates accurately identifying customer expectations regarding innovations to be implemented. Most innovations introduced to the market in the food sector are implemented using the "lean startup methodology." This methodology is based on the principle of conducting customer interviews, identifying customer problems in a specific area, and developing new products that directly address these problems.

Every holding company or group of companies has its own unique management system and culture. Therefore, there is no one-size-fits-all solution. When working with holding companies on innovation, the most crucial phase of the program is the study conducted to assess the group's needs and competencies in this area. Accurate diagnosis is critical to the design and success of the right innovation management model.

The conflict between Russia and Ukraine has raised the issue of energy supply security. Authorities, already focusing on solar and wind energy to reduce carbon emissions, have subsequently begun to focus on hydrogen. The EU's hydrogen incentive package has led companies to direct their R&D efforts to this area. Hydrogen, which can also be used for electricity generation and storage, is poised to play a significant role in the global energy market in the future.

The primary goal of an innovation program is to create a cultural shift within an organization. The ultimate goal of this cultural shift is for employees to move from viewing themselves as mere salaried employees to embracing the company as owners or stakeholders, taking ownership of their work and projects. The success of companies recognized as global innovators lies in positioning and nurturing their employees as "internal" entrepreneurs.

The petroleum refining industry is highly susceptible to innovation for many reasons. The use of new technologies related to research, design, control, operation, maintenance, data processing, supply chain management, marketing, and distribution is steadily increasing in the refining field. The rise of alternative energy sources to fossil fuels increases the refining sector's need for innovation and drives continuous improvement to remain competitive.

It's crucial for companies to develop the competence to manage their own innovations over time, just as it is for them to innovate. To achieve this, innovation programs, initially implemented with the support of consultants, must be transferred to managers trained by the organization in this area at a certain stage. Developing managers who will serve as in-house innovation mentors and coordinate activities in this area ensures the sustainability of the organization's innovation efforts.

Some of the technologies used in civilian applications today stem from solutions developed over time by the defense industry for different purposes. "Dual Use" technologies, also known as "Çifte Utilization" in Turkish, consist of technologies that originate in the defense industry and migrate to the civilian sector, or are transferred from the civilian sector to the defense industry. Defense industry companies, in particular, can achieve higher revenues by developing their capabilities in the "Dual Use" field.

Many new business models used in entrepreneurial projects are those first implemented in Western countries. While these business models have equivalents in Anglo-Saxon law, in some cases, they do not have an equivalent in the Turkish legal system. Consequently, some entrepreneurs attempt to implement similar projects previously implemented in the US or Europe in Turkey, leading to various legal problems.

Protecting the trademarks, industrial designs, software, patents, and internet domain names resulting from innovation projects is crucial. Failure to take the necessary precautions in this area in a timely manner risks losing the project's achievements and wasting all the effort and resources invested. These measures require a two-pronged approach: protecting the rights of rights holders while also preventing the violation of third-party rights.

Global population growth is causing energy consumption to increase globally. This development presents some differences for the LPG sector. While LPG consumption, particularly in homes, is increasing in developing countries, LPG consumption is decreasing in developed countries that use natural gas. This downward trend, which also applies to the LPG sector in Turkey, is forcing manufacturers and distributors to develop new business models.

The risks startups pose in terms of intellectual and industrial property rights are often overlooked by fund experts conducting investment analysis, or the assessment is left to legal professionals who are not experts in this field. Investments made with the hope that the selected startup will grow rapidly and become global often face serious obstacles due to the lack of timely and accurate analysis.

The development of digital technologies is making vehicles increasingly sophisticated. It makes it impossible for all the new technologies found in a car to be produced by a single R&D department. This highlights the importance of automotive companies employing diverse open innovation solutions and collaborating with startups.

The notion that innovation should only be conducted within a company, or that company secrets would be exposed, began to be abandoned towards the end of the 20th century. Companies that extended their innovation efforts beyond the company and enlisted the support of various stakeholders have achieved significant success in this area. In our country, it is crucial for companies to conduct awareness-raising and awareness-raising activities at management levels to enable them to take this important "first" step.

Successful investment in the startup ecosystem depends on properly managing the risks inherent in it. Today, it's possible to access a wealth of statistical information about startups both in Turkey and abroad through the internet and various organizations. However, analyzing this raw information and transforming it into a meaningful form that decision-makers can use requires specialized expertise.

Organizing an entrepreneurship program generates significant excitement and motivation for both the organizing institution and the entrepreneurs. However, in the excitement of breaking new ground, the legal aspects of these programs are often overlooked. It's common for the basic legal procedures for the organization's normal operation not to be designed to address the risks that may arise from working with internal or external entrepreneurs.

The rapid development of digital technologies has brought to the fore the possibility of a gradual expansion of communications into space. The fact that the number of IoT devices in existence on Earth exceeds the total human population makes it impossible to meet our current and future communication needs with terrestrial infrastructure. The number of satellites, currently around 6,000, is expected to exceed 50,000 by 2030. The rapid decline in satellite and launch costs will be decisive for the future of all sectors.

The importance of startups in today's economy is growing daily. However, while most corporations regularly monitor their competitors in their respective sectors, they often fail to monitor startups within their own sector or those with which their competitors collaborate. This lack of monitoring leads to companies missing opportunities to collaborate with startups to develop their own businesses, such as through joint sales, R&D, or ProCs.

Transportation challenges in major cities and new environmental health standards have brought urban mobility to the forefront of the automotive industry. The challenges faced by engineers designing new vehicles today are vastly different from those of the 20th century. For the automotive industry to adapt to these conditions and integrate new digital technologies into its products, it requires full integration with the startup ecosystem working in this field.

Trade fairs are important collaboration platforms that bring together actors in a specific sector and facilitate the creation of new commercial relationships. The low level of awareness about collaborating with startups in our country causes many companies to miss significant business opportunities. Today, taking measures to ensure the participation of startups, the most important actors in the new economy, in trade fairs has become a necessity to fully utilize the economic potential of trade fairs.

Technological and economic developments are rapidly increasing global energy demand. Global warming is the most significant pressure on the energy sector today. Increasing public awareness in this area and the enactment of local and international regulations on clean energy have led to the emergence of new strategies for planning the future of the energy sector. Today, generating energy sustainably is as important as generating it.

In practice, innovation mentoring is often thought to be a service solely for entrepreneurial project teams. However, the need for mentoring in companies isn't limited to project teams; it also applies to managers who play a key role in driving program ownership. Company management's lack of awareness of project teams' training and the stages they've gone through, coupled with their inability to provide feedback where necessary, is a significant factor jeopardizing the sustainability of in-house entrepreneurship programs.

Startups are the driving force of the new economy, and the driving force behind startups is their financing mechanisms. Financing opportunities available to early-stage startups in Turkey are more plentiful than in most developed countries. However, early-stage startup financing also implies higher risk. To make high-return investments in these types of startups, investors must utilize a risk assessment tool specifically tailored to their needs when making decisions.