The AI-powered 'job interview' project won an award.

Speaking about the project's purpose, fourth-year student Alikan Köse, who will be in Germany this semester for Erasmus, said, "Artificial intelligence is developing very rapidly. With this project, we aim to ease the workload of human resources. The aim of our project was to create an AI-powered platform that simplifies the recruitment process for both candidates and the corporate side. We provide an environment where candidates can experience job interview scenarios, and on the corporate side, we automate the recruitment process for human resources. This award represents months of hard work. It's a source of pride to be rewarded for our efforts." Third-year student Hatice Efe expressed her happiness at winning this award, saying, "Artificial intelligence can make human resources processes much faster and more objective. We also know that large companies are already actively using it. We believe it will become widespread in our country."

Turkey Innovation Week 2025 (TIW), organized for the 12th time by the Turkish Exporters Assembly (TİM), took place at the Haliç Congress Center from June 9th to November 11th. As part of the InovaTİM Innovation Competition, awards were received by those who won in the "Artificial Intelligence" category at Turkey Innovation Week 2025. Sakarya University of Applied Sciences Computer Engineering Department students Alikan Köse and Hatice Efe, who developed the Mentor IQ (job interview with artificial intelligence) project, placed fifth and won a prize of 80,000 lira. University students Alikan Köse and Hatice Efe received their awards from TİM President Mustafa Gültepe.

'AN ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE-SUPPORTED PLATFORM THAT EASYENS RECRUITING PROCESSES'

Speaking about the project they developed, Alikan Köse said, “Our goal here is an AI-powered interview platform. Our project is called Mentor IQ. Mentor IQ is an AI-powered interview platform. We participated in the İnovaTİM competition as part of Turkey Innovation Week. More than 2,000 people applied for this competition, and we placed 5th. The goal of our project was to create an AI-powered platform that streamlines the recruitment process for both candidates and corporate clients. We're providing an environment where candidates can experience job interview scenarios, while also automating the recruitment process for human resources on the corporate side. We were thrilled to receive the award. We received it from TİM President Mustafa Gültepe. This award is a testament to months of hard work. It's a source of pride to be rewarded for our efforts.”

'WE CONSIDERED THIS PROJECT IN TWO DIRECTIONS'

Hatice Efe, discussing the project's development process, said, “I'm a third-year student at Sakarya University of Applied Sciences. We've been thinking about this project for InovaTİM since the beginning of the year. We had this idea. It actually stemmed from our students' inexperience with interviews. My friend Alikan and I developed this project. I'd say it took about three to four months to develop. The project will not only help students prepare for new interviews but will also allow human resources to manage the process much more efficiently and quickly. We conceived the project in two ways. Artificial intelligence can make HR processes much faster and more objective. We also know that large companies are already actively using it. We believe this will become widespread in our country. I was very excited and proud. We received thousands of applications, and from there, we made it into the top five in the field of artificial intelligence. I was happy, proud, and excited.”

'WE PROVIDED THEM WITH MENTORSHIP ON HOW THEY CAN TRANSFORM THIS INTO BUSINESS'

Kamil Mercimek, General Coordinator of İnovaTİM, said, “The students applied for the artificial intelligence category as part of the İnovaTİM Innovation Competition. They've created a product and solved a problem. We've provided mentorship on how to transform this into a business. This will enable the students to make their products more specific, solution-oriented, and relevant to their target audience. We actually conducted interviews, and the students handled the rest themselves. One of our goals is for projects like this to receive a ranking. This is just one step that can boost their motivation. What really matters is that they continue to do so. I know they will continue their work. We will continue to support them. Our colleagues are creating a solution to a significant problem, especially for job seekers. Young university graduates seeking employment in Türkiye need interview experience. Being able to do this with an AI will enhance their experience. They will have increased confidence in both their professional lives and their interviews, learning from AI what kinds of questions might be asked and being able to answer them.”

The winners of the "Artificial Intelligence" category of the İnovaTİM Innovation Competition received their awards. Mehmet Keskin, Eren Turhan, Enes Dinçay, Yusuf Selim Şuşoğlu, and Mustafa Karadağ won the championship with their "Hypolens" project, while Mert Güden and Hüseyin Çavdar took second place with their "Refleksnet" initiative. Haktan Lofça and Cafer Kocamaz's "Ares" project came in third, Yaren Kepenek's "Syneris!" (Sineris) initiative came in fourth, and Alikan Köse and Hatice Efe's "Mentoriq!" (Mentorik) project came in fifth.

DHA

Reporter: News Center