AI infrastructure and data sovereignty will reshape telecom, says Turkcell

Turkcell’s CEO says telecom networks are now central to how countries protect their economies and sovereignty. As more services move online, control over digital infrastructure has become a question of national security and digital governance, not just connectivity. Governments are testing different ways to keep critical infrastructure, data, and decision-making capacity within their borders.

A key concern is the growing concentration of AI infrastructure — especially GPUs and other high-end compute — in a few countries and cloud providers. Turkcell argues this imbalance could leave smaller markets dependent on foreign platforms for core digital functions. The company sees a shift coming, with telecom operators pushed to invest in local AI infrastructure, data centers, and tighter data sovereignty rules, reshaping how networks are built, owned, and regulated.