Turkish State Entities Sponsor Muslim Tech Fest in London
The London event features Turkish state-linked sponsors including Invest Türkiye and Anadolu Agency, alongside speakers and partners scrutinized over alleged extremism and terror ties
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On June 6, Muslim Tech Fest 2026 will convene at London’s Novotel West, drawing together Muslim technology professionals, entrepreneurs, and investors from across the globe for what organizers describe as a day of “ideas, innovation and ambition.” An examination of the event’s sponsorship roster and speaker lineup, however, reveals sponsorship by Turkish state-backed entities and individuals who have been scrutinized for alleged extremist or terror links.
The event includes a “Palestinian Tech” networking space featuring Tech for Palestine and Gaza Sky Geeks. Tech for Palestine is simultaneously hosting a conference in Brussels on the same date, June 6, which will feature Dyab Abou Jahjah, the co-founder of the Hind Rajab Foundation, and a self-described former Hezbollah member who claimed he received military training.
Turkish State Apparatus Central to Event
The event lists multiple Turkish state-linked entities as official sponsors. Invest Türkiye, officially the Investment and Finance Office of the Presidency of the Republic of Türkiye, is listed as a sponsor. The organization reports directly to President Recep Tayyip Erdoğan.
The Turkish-linked state news agency Anadolu Agency (Anadolu Ajansı) also appears on the sponsor list. According to a World Trade Organization Secretariat report published on February 1, 2023, Türkiye’s Ministry of Treasury and Finance held a 47.75 percent stake in Anadolu Agency. Critics and analysts have described Anadolu as closely aligned with the Turkish state and Erdoğan-era media ecosystem. The media-rating site Media Bias/Fact Check rates Anadolu Agency as “Right Biased” and “Mixed” for factual reporting, describing it as an agency controlled by Türkiye’s ruling party with “a very strong pro-government state bias.”
Turkish Airlines is also represented in the speaker lineup through Murat Can Demir, listed by Muslim Tech Fest as Head of Startups at Turkish Airlines. Turkish Airlines is 49.12 percent owned through the Türkiye Wealth Fund.
Previously Detained Commentator Listed as Event Speaker
One of the event’s featured speakers is Sami Hamdi, a British political commentator detained by U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement at San Francisco International Airport on October 26, 2025. ICE said the State Department had revoked his visa on October 24, 2025, and that he was placed in immigration proceedings after the revocation. U.S. officials alleged he supported terrorism and threatened national security.
In a video posted online shortly after the Hamas attacks on October 7, 2023, Hamdi called to "celebrate the victory" of October 7 and asked his audience "how many of you felt euphoria" when they heard of the Hamas atrocities.
Gaza-Focused Workshop Features Controversial Figures and Organizations
The event also includes a “Palestinian Tech” networking space, described for those “interested in the role of technology in Palestinian resilience, innovation, and progress”, featuring Tech for Palestine and Gaza Sky Geeks. Tech for Palestine, previously reported by Jewish Onliner, has proven deeply controversial, with documented concerns about their leadership, methods, and affiliations, including associations with terror-linked speakers and organizations and antisemitic statements from personnel. The organization was founded in late 2023 by Irish technology entrepreneur Paul Biggar.
Gaza Sky Geeks is a program of Mercy Corps, a US-registered 501(c)3 and EU-registered charity. Separately, NGO Monitor has scrutinized Mercy Corps’ Gaza aid operations, citing a USAID/BHA factsheet stating that Mercy Corps received $9 million in FY2022 funding for multipurpose cash assistance in Gaza. NGO Monitor said such aid programs relied on coordination with Gaza’s Hamas-controlled Ministry of Social Development, including beneficiary lists.
Sponsor Connections to Muslim Brotherhood and Alleged Hamas Links
LaunchGood, the Muslim crowdfunding platform, appears in promotional material for a roundtable titled “Reclaiming the Sovereignty Stack Muslims Lost to Empire,” featuring the platform’s founder, Chris Blauvelt. The Jerusalem Post reported that LaunchGood hosted more than 70 Gaza-related campaigns, while noting concerns about alleged Hamas links involving some aid organizations using the platform.
LaunchGood’s partner for the event is Al Sharq Forum, whose founder and director is Wadah Khanfar, a former director-general of Al Jazeera. According to the Foundation for Defense of Democracies, Khanfar “was named as an early leader of Hamas’s office in Sudan” by multiple sources, and the Muslim Brotherhood’s own website previously identified him as such in 2007.
Tax-Exempt Organization Under Investigation Sponsoring Event
Islamic Relief is listed among the event sponsors. In the United States, Islamic Relief USA has been under investigation by the House Ways and Means Committee over its affiliation with Islamic Relief Worldwide, which the committee described as an organization with suspected ties to terrorism. The committee cited Islamic Relief Worldwide’s alleged “connections to terrorist entities, including Hamas, and a history of antisemitic behavior.”
IRUSA later filed a lawsuit against Islamic Relief Worldwide in the Southern District of New York in an attempt to sever ties, citing the committee’s referrals to the IRS for review of its tax-exempt status. Islamic Relief UK is also represented in the program