Hi Cigdem! Thanks so much for taking the time to speak with us and for speaking at this year's event! Firstly, please introduce yourself and tell us a little bit more about you and your career to date! 

I’m Cigdem Aytekin. I’m a senior software engineer in RIPE NCC, which is one of the world’s five RIRs (regional internet registry) in the world. An Internet Registry is responsible with distributing internet resources (IP numbers and ASNs) to its members and maintaining the registry of resource holders and their resources. I’m working in the software engineering department which develops and maintains software for the registry. 

What are you looking forward to at European Women in Technology? 

I’m curious about what we will hear from various speakers. What is happening elsewhere in the world? What are other women in technology busy with? 

This will also be my first time speaking in a big conference. I hope to have a positive contact with the audience and to inspire them with my presentation. 

What does the Leading the Digital Revolution theme mean to you? 

The Digital Revolution became even bigger and faster with the recent developments in AI. AI brought unprecedented power to the digital world. Leading this development in a good direction and mitigating its potential risks will be the most important thing in the near future. When I say good, I mean to the benefit of the world and the people.  

What can attendees expect from your session? 

My session is about getting back to work after a long career break. I made a come-back after ten years. In addition to telling my own story, I’ll put some ideas forward for people who are in a break or planning to have one. Besides that, I think you can think of it as a story about overcoming a significant obstacle in general. I hope that attendees will leave my session inspired, motivated and feeling empowered. 

What is your biggest prediction for 2025 for technology? 

It’s a bit of a dark prediction. I think already in 2025 we will see a huge increase in the development speed. AI tools will be developing most of the code, which will mean less demand for software engineers. I think a serious unemployment wave may hit us software engineers soon. I expect this to affect system engineers, too. 

Register for your place to join Cigdem for her session, 'Returning to Work After a Long Career Break ' at European Women in Technology on 25 - 26 June!