Digital Twin Technology: The Silent Revolution for Investors in Industry and Energy
Although it sometimes remains overshadowed by next-generation technologies, digital twin technology continues to revolutionize key sectors such as energy, industry, healthcare, and agriculture.
Although it sometimes remains overshadowed by next-generation technologies, digital twin technology continues to revolutionize key sectors such as energy, industry, healthcare, and agriculture. By providing a virtual reflection of the real world, these systems not only enhance operational efficiency but also reshape organizations’ strategic decision-making capabilities, crisis resilience, and sustainability potential.
Gartner predicts that by 2027, 70% of major manufacturing companies will have integrated digital twin technology into their operations. McKinsey estimates that by 2030, this technology could generate up to $1.5 trillion in economic impact. These projections have become a strong catalyst for both investors and technology developers. In fact, investments in digital twin startups reached $4.5 billion in 2022, with the figure expected to surpass $8 billion by 2025.
In its simplest definition, a digital twin is a real-time, data-driven virtual replica of a physical system or process. Supported by sensors and IoT infrastructure, this technology allows machines, infrastructure, and even the human body to be digitally modeled. However, it is far more than just a modeling tool — it serves as an engine for prediction, planning, and optimization. This is why digital twins are not merely a “tech trend” but an increasingly vital investment and competitive strategy.
Digital Twin Applications in Energy and Infrastructure
In the energy and infrastructure sectors, digital twin applications form the backbone of decision-support systems, particularly in large-scale projects.
For instance:
National Grid in the US and UK developed digital twins of power transmission lines, optimizing maintenance schedules and reducing fault rates by 30%.
Shell minimized production losses in refineries through a similar approach,
While Siemens established new standards for smart city planning using digital twin–based urban infrastructure solutions.
From Turkey’s perspective, the technology holds major potential in solar and wind energy projects — enabling performance simulations, optimizing energy storage systems, and balancing grid loads more effectively.
Industry and Manufacturing: The Smart Factory Revolution
In manufacturing, digital twins have become one of the core components of smart factories.
Siemens’ Amberg factory reduced its error rate to one in a million using digital twin systems.
Bosch achieved a 25% reduction in energy consumption,
While Airbus simulates its production processes digitally, saving €300 million annually.
In Turkey, SMEs in organized industrial zones (OSBs) can strengthen their global competitiveness and accelerate compliance with the EU Green Deal by adopting digital twin solutions. For industrial production, this technology is becoming increasingly strategic in achieving carbon emission reduction and energy efficiency targets.
Healthcare: From Machines to Humans
In healthcare, digital twins are now being developed not only for medical devices but also for human biology.
Dassault Systèmes’ Living Heart Project enables personalized cardiac simulations, helping assess surgical risks with greater precision.
Philips has used digital twins in medical imaging devices, reducing failure rates by 40%.
Babylon Health leverages AI-powered digital twin models in its virtual doctor platform, serving millions of users across 24 countries.
For Turkish healthcare startups and medical device manufacturers, digital twin technology offers significant potential to accelerate clinical validation, improve healthcare tourism quality, and simplify regulatory compliance.
Agriculture: Tackling Climate and Resource Challenges
In agriculture, digital twin applications provide solutions to challenges such as climate change, water scarcity, and production planning inefficiencies.
A joint system developed by Microsoft and Bayer increased crop productivity by 15%,
While John Deere shortened machinery maintenance times by 40% using digital twins.
IBM’s Watson Decision Platform analyzes weather and soil data to determine the optimal harvest time.
In Turkey, particularly in regions such as Konya Plain, GAP, and Thrace, digital twin systems could not only reduce water and fertilizer consumption but also increase yield, contributing directly to the national economy.
Digital Twins as an Investment Strategy
For investors, digital twin technology represents not just a technology investment but also an infrastructure investment. By 2025, the majority of global investments in this field are expected to focus on manufacturing, energy, healthcare, and urban technologies.
According to CB Insights, the value of these investments could approach $10 billion in the coming years. In Turkey, local startups focusing on digital twin solutions can rapidly scale through EU funds, development agencies, and private sector incentives.
Digital twin technology is not merely about virtualizing the physical world — it provides the tools to build the future today. Companies that adopt it early will not only win today, but also own tomorrow.
Today, digital twin technology is more than a tech solution — it is a competitive advantage, a sustainability strategy, and a scalability opportunity.
Boğaziçi Ventures’ Perspective: Investing in Turkey’s Digital Twin Future
At Boğaziçi Ventures, we view the development of digital twin technology in Turkey as strategically critical. In this context, our two venture capital investment funds aim to play key roles in driving this transformation:
Sinerji GSYF provides capital support to Turkish startups operating in mobility, energy, manufacturing technologies, and sustainability.
İstanbul Sanayi Odası GSYF (ISO GSYF) — established in collaboration with the Istanbul Chamber of Industry — focuses on technology-based projects that can enhance the global competitiveness of Turkish industry and foster the growth of high-impact startups.
Both funds stand beside scalable, globally minded ventures that contribute to the domestic production ecosystem, helping shape Turkey’s next-generation industrial infrastructure.