Slush's licensed event series brings its Istanbul iteration back to Rixos Tersane from 12 to 14 October for a second year. Organisers are projecting attendance of more than 3,000 people, representation from 1,400 startups and participation by over 600 investors—a significant jump from approximately 1,700 attendees at the inaugural gathering.

Last year's debut, held under the name Istanbul Slush'D at the same venue in 2025, reached capacity and facilitated more than 1,000 investor-founder conversations while drawing over 75 global investment funds to the region. International participation was substantial, with half the attendees travelling from outside Turkey.

About Slush'D

Slush originated in Helsinki during 2008 as a grassroots initiative and has evolved into a cornerstone event for Europe's startup community. The organisation appointed Noora Saksa as chief executive in January. Through its Slush'D licensing model, the platform extends its format to emerging entrepreneurial ecosystems globally.

Akbank and Togg, Turkey's electric vehicle manufacturer, serve as the primary sponsors for this year's Istanbul edition.

Three Themes for 2026

The conference programme centres on three interconnected topics shaping the current tech landscape.

  • Sovereignty & Resilience examines strategies for constructing more autonomous systems, spanning technology stacks and supply chain architecture
  • AI as Infrastructure explores how artificial intelligence is becoming foundational infrastructure for emerging products and business models
  • The Human Edge investigates the enduring significance of creativity, strategic thinking and instinct in an era of accelerating AI capabilities

Speaker Roster

The initial speaker announcements include prominent figures from the venture capital world. Zhenya Loginov from Accel, Ekin Doğuş Çubuk of Periodic Labs, and Judith Dada, co-CEO of Langdock and senior partner at Visionaries, have confirmed their participation. Bryan Kim, who founded Mido Capital and previously worked as a partner at Andreessen Horowitz, will also attend, alongside Emil Schaefer from Index Ventures.

Additional confirmed speakers include Zeynep Yavuz, a partner at General Catalyst; Elizabeth Weil, founder of Scribble Ventures; and Basil Fateen, who leads the startups and VC division at Nvidia. Chris Kemp, founder and chief executive of Astra, and Ilyas Khan, founder of quantum computing firm Quantinuum, round out the early announcements.

The programme also features Andrey Kazakov, chief executive of Adjust, and Egem Eraslan, founder of Midas. Gaming receives dedicated attention through Akin Babayiğit, co-founder of Tripledot Studios, and Kübra Gündoğan, chief executive of Loom Games. Grand Games, an Istanbul-based studio that secured a $70 million Series B funding round in May, will also take the stage.

Organisers have indicated that representatives from OpenAI, Anthropic, ElevenLabs, Index Ventures, Mubadala and PIF will participate, with additional speakers to be announced in the coming weeks.

Event Structure and Logistics

The gathering commences on 12 October with a restricted-access Investor Day and concurrent hackathon. The main conference sessions take place on 13 and 14 October. The organising team has expanded to twice its previous size, with corresponding growth in the volunteer network supporting the event.

Co-founder Şan Yalman highlighted the expanded scope of this year's programming, noting that several speakers are visiting Turkey for the first time. He emphasised the event's mission: "The focus is on creating the kind of access and conversations that are usually concentrated in only a handful of global hubs," Yalman stated.

Co-founder Melisa Çağlar, who began her involvement with Slush as a high school volunteer in Helsinki, underscored the organisation's evolution. "This year, with a larger team and stronger partnerships, we are taking that commitment further, aiming to position Istanbul as a hub that connects Turkish and regional entrepreneurs with capital, opportunities, and global markets across Europe, the Middle East, and Asia," Çağlar said.

Ticket Information

Registration is now open through the Istanbul Ignited by Slush'D website. Pricing tiers include student passes at €80, startup passes at €200, investor passes at €350 and general admission at €400, with these amounts stated before VAT and processing fees.

Source: The Next Web