Work is underway to transform the Atatürk Airport in Istanbul, which was closed in 2018. Previously a major transport hub, the airport is now planned to be converted into Terminal Istanbul—an ambitious project intended to become a global center for entrepreneurs and startups.
Former passenger halls, check-in areas, and baggage terminals are being renovated into modern office spaces, co-working areas, incubation centers, and meeting rooms. The complex will also host international acceleration programs for companies and investors.
Erkem Tuzgen, CEO of the Terminal Istanbul initiative, noted that the goal goes beyond simply creating a technology hub. He aims to form an entire ecosystem capable of attracting local and foreign investors, businessmen, and innovators.
According to him, individuals with viable plans and innovative ideas will gain access to international capital and mentorship to enter global markets.
The total area planned for modernization is approximately 200,000 square meters. The first phase of the project is expected to launch next month, providing space for 50 startups, with the number of participants anticipated to increase to 100 by the end of the year.
Tuzgen announced the signing of a memorandum of understanding with Techstars, one of the largest entrepreneurship organizations. Techstars will place its incubation and globalization programs in Terminal Istanbul, utilizing its investment funds and extensive network.
Furthermore, the Chinese state entity Shanghai State-owned Capital Investment, which manages assets worth $47 billion, has signed an agreement to open an office in Terminal Istanbul, allowing the fund to interact directly with tech startups.
Despite the fact that in 2018 the Turkish government faced criticism for transferring commercial operations from Atatürk Airport to the new Istanbul Airport, which is now one of the busiest in Europe, Terminal Istanbul has so far avoided serious criticism because the former airport buildings were vacant for a long time.
Turkey is following the example of other countries, such as France, which turned a railway freight warehouse in Paris into the Station F campus in 2017. Tuzgen emphasized that the ambitions of Terminal Istanbul are aimed at placing Turkey on par with global centers like Beijing, San Francisco, and New York in global technology discussions.
In addition, the Turkish government is actively promoting the country as a potential destination for businesses and investors leaving the Gulf countries, offering incentives to financial companies and digital nomads. The Istanbul financial center offers significant corporate tax exemptions.
Flat6Labs, one of the largest ecosystem builders in the Middle East, is also joining the project, and a deal with Monshaat, the General Directorate of Small and Medium Enterprises of Saudi Arabia, is under discussion. Raad Aljouni, founder of a Swiss AI venture fund, highly praised the project, noting that due to Turkey's location between East and West, its rich heritage, and developed infrastructure, Terminal Istanbul could become a significant global innovation ecosystem.
However, some investors anonymously informed MEE about difficulties related to the frequent changes in the regulatory environment in Turkey, issues of the rule of law, and a complex immigration system.
Despite the government's efforts to tighten fiscal and monetary policies since 2023, economic difficulties persist, and annual inflation is projected to remain around 30 percent by the end of the year.
Terminal Istanbul is designed to address some of these problems. Tuzgen expects parliamentary approval for legislation that allows for the creation of companies in digital format, which will eliminate one of the main obstacles for business. Additionally, a single service center will be created for immigration, social security, and taxation issues, simplifying bureaucratic procedures for investors and their employees.
Another advantage is the presence of the existing airport VIP terminal, allowing private jets to land near the complex. Investors can arrive, hold meetings, and monitor projects without going through passport control before continuing their journey. The complex will also include kitchens supported by the MSA Culinary Academy, offering modern Turkish cuisine.
Binance Wallet has announced the launch of a new competition dedicated to NES perpetuals trading, offering a prize pool of $50,000. Participants have ten days to earn their share of this fund.
The participation window opens on July 28 at 13:00 UTC and closes on August 7 at the same time.
Nesa is a Layer-1 blockchain. Its core concept involves decentralized artificial intelligence inference that maintains privacy. Models operate on distributed computing nodes instead of using a central server, and results undergo cryptographic verification throughout the process, preventing any single operator from reading the data.
The NES system manages three key aspects: inference request fees, node operator staking, and governance voting.
The Mainnet was launched on May 9, 2026, with a hard limit of one billion tokens. Binance Alpha listed NES on June 24 while simultaneously running a Wallet enhancement campaign.
To participate, users must open the Binance application and navigate to the Binance Wallet section. Then, they need to find the NES Perpetuals Trading Competition event page and click the 'Join' button to register. Participants must trade NESUSDT perpetual contracts, opening both long and short positions, while adhering to a minimum trade volume of 1,000 USDT.
Users who start trading earlier can take advantage of the Day 1 Early Bird Multiplier of 2.0x.
The NES Perpetuals Trading Competition offers Binance Wallet users the opportunity to participate in trading NESUSDT perpetual contracts for a share of the $50,000 prize pool until August 7. Since some conditions have not yet been disclosed, participants are advised to review the official event page before starting to trade. It should be remembered that perpetual futures are associated with leverage and carry significant risks, so users must conduct their own research before participating.
Porsche used an unusual approach to demonstrate the capability of its new electric Cayenne: the SUV was driven at 269 km/h beneath the planet's largest aircraft during its takeoff and landing phases.
This demonstration took place at the Mojave Air and Space Port, located in California. The vehicle had to reach speeds exceeding 257 km/h to keep pace with the giant aircraft, which is the Roc, belonging to Stratolaunch. This is an experimental twin-fuselage airplane designed to serve as a space vehicle launch platform.
The Roc has an impressive wingspan of 117 meters, making it the largest in the world. Furthermore, it features six engines that generate a total thrust of 154 tons and a maximum takeoff capacity of 590 tons.
The concept for this maneuver did not originate from Porsche, but rather from the engineers at Stratolaunch. By analyzing the aerodynamics of the Roc, they identified an area of relative calm in the middle of the intense airflow: this zone is located just after the landing gear and before the tail, where turbulence and engine jet significantly decrease.
However, this pocket of air moves along with the aircraft. This posed a challenge to the driver: he had to enter this zone before the engines gained speed and remain there with millimeter precision until takeoff. A delay could result in direct impact with the jet, putting the car at risk of being thrown upwards, while moving too early would mean colliding with the landing gear.
To meet the requirement of keeping pace with the aircraft at any speed, maintaining stability, and exceeding the Roc's takeoff speed of 257 km/h, the new Cayenne Turbo Electric was chosen. This model offers 1,155 horsepower and 153 kgfm of torque, capable of accelerating from 0 to 100 km/h in approximately 2.5 seconds and equipped with active aerodynamics.
The SUV's weight, which is 2,645 kg, normally considered a disadvantage, became an advantage because it prevented the vehicle from being affected by turbulence as a lighter car would. Patrick Long, an endurance driver and former factory team member of Porsche, drove the vehicle. He reported that the experience was one of the most intense and focused moments of his life. Initially, he maintained low power to position himself correctly, and the actual acceleration only occurred when the aircraft's six engines came into full operation. After exceeding 161 km/h, he activated Boost mode and pushed to the limit, staying alongside the landing gear, registering over 273 km/h on the dashboard before reducing acceleration.
Two takeoffs and two landings were performed under the Roc. The landing maneuver echoes procedures carried out by the American Air Force decades ago with the Lockheed U-2, which uses a support car on approach, although in this case, the aircraft is three times larger. In subsequent flights, the Cayenne also transported other people, including actor Orlando Bloom, Porsche Design ambassador, journalist Mat Watson, and two Stratolaunch team leaders.
