Zonguldak Bülent Ecevit University (BEUN) achieved another success in the field of science, technology, and innovation. The Varboost Oracle team, established by the ZBEÜ Automation and R&D team (OVAT) and IOSA REVO ROBOTEAM, as well as the Tıpta Yapay Zekâ (Artificial Intelligence in Medicine) Students Society, has successfully advanced to the finals within the scope of the TEKNOFEST 2026 Technology Competitions.
From Artificial Intelligence in Medicine to TEKNOFEST Finals
Varboost Oracle team, established by Tıpta Yapay Zekâ Students Society under BEUN Faculty of Medicine has advanced to the finals in Artificial Intelligence Competitions- Undergraduate level and over category in TEKNOFEST 2026. The team entered the competition with its project on artificial intelligence-based variant pathogenicity estimation in clinical genomics. Ranking 8th with a score of 98 among 614 applications across Türkiye in preliminary project report, Varboost Oracle managed to be among the 208 teams which made it to the detailed project report phase.
The team, which scored 97,50 in the second phase made it to the finals of TEKNOFEST 2026, as of 1 August 2026. Varboost Oracle team, which included Yiğit Eren Şener and Salih Genç as members, is advised by Asst. Prof. Dr. Burçin Acuner, an academic member of BEUN Department of Plastic, Reconstructive and Aesthetics at the Faculty of Medicine.
The fact that Tıpta Yapay Zeka community, which was established to bring medicine and artificial intelligence together and carry out interdisciplinary studies advanced to the finals 6 months after it was established in TEKNOFEST, the biggest aircraft, space, and technology festival.
BEUN’s Autonomous Vehicles Also Advance to the Finals
BEUN’s success in the TEKNOFEST 2026 finals was not limited to artificial intelligence in healthcare. The university’s technology teams, ZBEÜ Automation and R&D Team (OVAT) and ISA REVO ROBOTEAM, have also advanced to the finals in the Robotaxi-Passenger Autonomous Vehicle Competition. Aiming to develop young people’s knowledge and competencies in autonomous vehicle technologies, the Robotaxi-Passenger Autonomous Vehicle Competition encourages participants to gain competencies in various areas of autonomous vehicle technologies, particularly original design and algorithm development.
Three Teams, Two Fields, One Goal: A Strong Contribution to the National Technology Initiative
The advancement of three BEUN teams to the TEKNOFEST 2026 finals in different categories has also become a remarkable indicator of the diversity within the university’s technology ecosystem. Projects developed in different disciplines demonstrate the vision of BEUN students to transform scientific knowledge into technology and technology into social benefit. The goal of the three BEUN teams that will compete in the TEKNOFEST 2026 finals is to represent BEUN and Zonguldak in the best possible way through the projects they have developed.
Rector Özölçer: “Our Young People’s Dreams Are Meeting Türkiye’s Technology Vision”
Commenting on the achievement, BEUN Rector Prof. Dr. İsmail Hakkı Özölçer stated that TEKNOFEST is a highly valuable organization that brings young people’s dreams together with science and technology, and expressed the following:
“TEKNOFEST, which brings our country’s national technology vision together with the knowledge, efforts, and production power of our young people, is a very important science and innovation gathering that shapes Türkiye’s future. This major organization, where our young people are encouraged to conduct research, develop, and produce, is also the strongest reflection of the ideal of the National Technology Initiative.
It is a great source of pride for us that our students have advanced to the Türkiye finals with the project they developed within our Medical Artificial Intelligence Community. This achievement, attained with such a qualified project that brings healthcare and artificial intelligence together, clearly demonstrates our students’ scientific knowledge, productivity, and the contribution they will make to our country’s technology vision.
In addition, the advancement of our ZBEÜ Automation and R&D Team and our ISA REVO ROBOTEAM team to the finals of the Robotaxi-Passenger Autonomous Vehicle Competition demonstrates that our university’s capacity to produce technology continues to grow stronger across different disciplines. It is another source of pride for us that our students are developing projects in critical fields of the future, from artificial intelligence to autonomous vehicle technologies.
With these thoughts, I would like to express my gratitude to TEKNOFEST Chairman of the Board and Board of Trustees Selçuk Bayraktar, who has taken the lead in making TEKNOFEST, which opens great horizons for our young people in the fields of science and technology, a reality, and to everyone who contributed to this major organization. I would also like to express my gratitude to the President of the Council of Higher Education, Prof. Dr. Erol Özvar, and the Council of Higher Education family for their visionary efforts, which strengthen the research, technology development, and project production capacities of our universities day by day. I wholeheartedly congratulate our esteemed academics, advisors, and students who contributed to these important achievements and wish them outstanding success in the final process.
I believe that our students will demonstrate the same determination and perseverance during the final process, deliver a highly successful performance, and achieve important rankings in the final stage to be held at Bilişim Vadisi. Following this stage, they will receive their awards at TEKNOFEST 2026, which will be held in Şanlıurfa, and represent both our university and Zonguldak in the best possible way.”
