Yıldız Technical University stood out at TEKNOFEST Southeast with the 47 teams that advanced to the finals and the awards they won. Submitting 336 projects across 64 different categories with 292 teams at TEKNOFEST 2026, Yıldız students won a total of 11 awards—including 4 first-place, 2 second-place, and 5 third-place finishes—as well as 2 special awards.

At TEKNOFEST Southeast, held at Şanlıurfa GAP Airport, our Yıldız students showcased their projects—which transformed academic knowledge into technology—to visitors. Of our 292 teams that submitted 336 projects spanning fields ranging from autonomous vehicles to unmanned aerial vehicles, and from artificial intelligence to biotechnology for TEKNOFEST 2026, 47 advanced to the finals.

Organized under the leadership of the Ministry of Industry and Technology and the Turkey Technology Team Foundation (T3 Foundation), TEKNOFEST Southeast brought together young technology developers from all across Turkey. YTU students brought the experience they gained throughout the year in the design, software, production, and testing phases to the festival grounds.

First Place in Four Categories

Our Falak Team won first place in the Artificial Intelligence in Aviation Competition, while our Alaca Doğan Team took first place in the Rotorcraft Category of the International Unmanned Aerial Vehicle Competition.

The YTÜ Alternative Energy Systems Club (AESK) took first place in both the Ready-Made Vehicle and Original Vehicle categories of the Robotaxi Passenger Autonomous Vehicle Competition. Thus, the “Yıldızlılar” won first place in four categories.

Second Place in Two Competitions

Our alumnus Abdül Basitadam took second place in the E-Commerce Competition.

Our Tarlis Technology Team, featuring Abdulgazi Şimşek and Elif Ece Doğan, finished second in the T3 Foundation Scholarship Artificial Intelligence Creathon.

Five third-place finishes in various fields

AESK took third place in the Hydromobile Category of the International Electric Vehicle Races.

Our Yıldız Mining Team took third place in the Mining Technologies Competition with the project “Electromagnetic Wave-Based Hydrocarbon Characterization Using an Unmanned Underwater Vehicle,” developed to assess hydrocarbon potential beneath the seabed with high precision.

Our YTÜ-YODA Team won third place in the Free Mission Category of the International UAV Competition with the KESTREL project. Designed to contribute to post-disaster reconnaissance and communication efforts, this unmanned aerial vehicle offers autonomous mapping and object detection, as well as an alternative communication network for damaged infrastructure. KESTREL also serves as an example of the technologies developed by YTÜ teams to address societal challenges.

Our ORION II team took third place in the University and Above Project Category of the Biotechnology and Innovation Competition.

Our “Henüz Ölçülmedi” team placed third in the Software Category of the Quantum Technologies Competition. Our team also competed in the finals of the Artificial Intelligence in Aviation Competition.

Two Special Awards

AESK, which took first place in two categories of the Robotaxi Passenger Autonomous Vehicle Competition, also won the Most Original Software Award in the same competition.

Our Re-Tau-Ch team, which competed in the Idea Category of the Biotechnology and Innovation Competition, was awarded the Best Presentation Award.

Other Results from the Final Competitions

Our Derin Mavi Underwater Team finished 7th in the Unmanned Underwater Systems Competition.

Our Derin Mavi Air Defense Team placed 11th in the Iron Dome Air Defense Systems Competition.

Our Dilek Team finished 17th in the Mining Technologies Competition.

292 teams contributed to technology with 336 projects

Yıldız Technical University contributed to TEKNOFEST 2026 with 336 projects submitted by 292 teams across 64 different categories. Robotaxis, electric vehicles, artificial intelligence in aviation, unmanned aerial and maritime vehicles, rocket technologies, industrial robotics, biotechnology, mining technologies, electronic warfare, chip design, quantum technologies, swarm UAVs, and air defense systems, were among the fields in which Yıldızlı students developed projects.

The projects developed by our students through their passion for research and teamwork highlighted the journey of knowledge acquired at the university—from design to production and application. TEKNOFEST served as a meeting point where Yıldız students tested their work under competition conditions, shared experiences with different teams, and presented their projects to technology enthusiasts.