A roundtable meeting titled "The Communication Perspective of Turkic States: The Challenges of Artificial Intelligence" was held as part of the Turkic World Dialogue Forum organised by the Directorate of Communications.
Faculty Member at the Department of International Relations at Hacı Bayram Veli University in Ankara, Prof. Erman Akıllı moderated the roundtable discussion, which was held at a hotel in Ankara, with speakers including Dean of the Faculty of Social Sciences at the Universitas Islam Internasional Indonesia (UIII), Prof. Philips J. Vermonte; Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of Hayat TV based in Bosnia and Herzegovina, Elvir Švrakić; Faculty Member at Girne American University Prof. Murat Akkaya; Head of the Artificial Intelligence (AI) Department at the Uzbekistan-based Central Asian Neuroengineering Academy (CANA School) in Uzbekistan, Musabek Mahmudjanov; Director of the Turkish News Agency-Cyprus (TAK), Fehmi Gürdallı; Deputy Director of the Kazakhstan-based Eurasian Research Institute; Cengizhan Zhanaltay; and an expert at the Digital Development Department of the Presidential Situation Centre Directorate of Kyrgyzstan, Rustambek Shabyev.
Vermonte said that governments need to communicate clearly about the use of artificial intelligence and ensure that it is used transparently to respond to the issues that AI brings in the area of communication.
Emphasising AI's capacity to produce convincing text, audio, and visual material affordably, Vermonte further said that the widespread dissemination of fabricated information may result in real evidence being disregarded as fake.
Vermonte emphasised that while content can spread in minutes, official announcements may be delayed owing to bureaucratic procedures, making combating disinformation more difficult.
Vermonte proposed that collaboration between the Organisation of Turkic States (OTS) and the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) in the fields of artificial intelligence and information integrity could assist countries in developing common rules and protecting their citizens from the negative effects of AI, adding, "A potential approach is to establish a coalition throughout Asia, given that current platforms are already in place. For example, Indonesia and Türkiye can meet and discuss; also, Türkiye is one of ASEAN's sectoral dialogue partners."
Importance of Turkish TV series reaching the Balkans faster with AI translation
Švrakić emphasised Bosnia and Herzegovina's historical and cultural ties with Türkiye, highlighting the role of media organisations in bridging cultures by introducing Turkish television series and content to Balkan viewers.
Švrakić added that artificial intelligence has been integrated into routine business functions such as content editing, data analysis, marketing, financial reporting, and media trend monitoring, noting that AI-driven translations enable the rapid dissemination of Turkish television series to regional audiences, thereby enhancing cultural exchange.
Stating that the media industry's trust has been further eroded by the production of fake videos, synthetic voices, and automatically generated news stories through artificial intelligence, Švrakić emphasised that human oversight should be conducted prior to the publication of AI-generated content and that responsibility must remain with human beings.
Švrakić highlighted that languages with limited speakers are inadequately represented in global AI frameworks, stressing the necessity for the creation of unique datasets and language models for languages like Bosnian, stating, "While artificial intelligence can generate content more swiftly than humans, it cannot replace human responsibility, moral judgement, or experience."
Need for the Turkic world to establish its own AI infrastructure and linguistic models
According to Akkaya, artificial intelligence technologies offer considerable benefits, but because existing systems are developed by other countries, they do not fully meet the needs of the Turkic world.
Akkaya highlighted the multitude of institutions, research entities, and companies within the Turkic world that possess the capability to innovate new technologies, saying that nations must create their own technological infrastructure, data systems, and linguistic models to function autonomously in the digital domain.
Akkaya emphasised the necessity for the Turkic world to enhance collaboration among academic institutions and research entities to establish a collective technology framework, standardised linguistic models, and a common approach.
Pointing out that artificial general intelligence research had also entered the agenda, Akkaya stated that the Turkic world should not limit itself to keeping pace with existing technologies but should also aim to develop new technologies through joint research and extend its achievements in the defence industry to data technologies.
Opportunities offered by artificial intelligence in journalism
Mahmudjanov noted that artificial intelligence offered significant opportunities in journalism, education and communication, but also brought serious risks, including fake videos, cloned voices and the spread of misinformation.
Highlighting the importance of developing joint mechanisms among news agencies in Turkic states to enable rapid fact-checking and the sharing of official statements as part of efforts to combat disinformation, Mahmudjanov said that AI should assist journalists rather than replace human oversight.
Mahmudjanov proposed establishing centres across Turkic states to train students, teachers, and experts in artificial intelligence, emphasising the need to develop shared language models, translation systems, and digital educational resources for Turkic languages.
Emphasising the importance of establishing fact-checking mechanisms and developing shared technologies for Turkic languages, Mahmudjanov said Turkic states could strengthen their technological independence by training experts and enhancing cooperation among journalists, educators, researchers, and technology specialists.
Call for AI-powered fact-checking and cooperation against disinformation among Turkic states
Gürdallı stated that artificial intelligence was helping overcome language barriers among Turkic states and accelerating news production, photo and video processing, and translation processes, thereby enabling significant developments in one country to reach audiences in other countries more quickly.
Gürdallı stressed that news organisations should develop rapid fact-checking mechanisms, ensure that AI-generated content is reviewed by journalists and editors before publication, and maintain transparency in the use of this technology.
Proposing that the Organisation of Turkic States develop a common strategy for using artificial intelligence in media, public diplomacy, and institutional communication, Gürdallı called for establishing a "Turkic World Joint News Verification Network" that brings together news agencies, public broadcasters, and fact-checking organisations.
Emphasising the importance of fast and accurate journalism in combating disinformation, Gürdallı said, "We must not lag behind in combating disinformation; we must publish news quickly and accurately."
The importance of artificial intelligence for the Middle Corridor
Zhanaltay stated that the United States, China, and the European Union were pursuing different strategies in the global competition in artificial intelligence: the United States focused on private-sector investment, China on state-backed investment, and the European Union on building a common technology ecosystem.
Drawing attention to the importance of using artificial intelligence in transport operations along the Middle Corridor, Zhanaltay noted that the technology could help reduce delays in rail and road transport, improve customs procedures and make freight costs more predictable.
Zhanaltay emphasised that cooperation in artificial intelligence should not be limited to economic gains; it should also aim to develop common language models that facilitate communication across Turkic languages and preserve cultural heritage.
Noting that successful cooperation in transport, inter-university partnerships and shared language technologies could pave the way for joint projects in areas such as agriculture, energy and water management, Zhanaltay stressed that Turkic states could gradually develop their own sovereign AI policies.
Why countries cannot build the digital future on their own
Shabyev noted that Kyrgyzstan's digitalisation policy aimed to accelerate government services, enhance transparency and facilitate citizens' access to public services.
Explaining that, within this framework, they had established shared data-sharing infrastructure among public institutions, a digital identity system, as well as a mobile application and an online portal enabling citizens to access services through a single point of contact, Shabyev said that these initiatives had eliminated the need for citizens to repeatedly provide the same information to different public institutions.
Stating that countries could not build the digital future on their own, Shabyev called for stronger cooperation among Turkic states in artificial intelligence, data centres, cybersecurity, digital skills development and expert training.