Artificial Intelligence Supported Digital Game and Exercise in Autism: TÜBİTAK Support for MAKÜ's Project

With the projects it conducts, Burdur Mehmet Akif Ersoy University (MAKÜ) adds another success to its TÜBİTAK 1001 project achievements. 

The project titled “A Holistic Approach to Examining the Effects of Artificial Intelligence-Supported Digital Game and Exercise Applications on Children with Autism and Typically Developing Children,” presented under the leadership of MAKÜ Faculty of Sport Sciences, Department of Physical Education and Sports Lecturer Dr. Emine Büşra Yılmaz, was deemed worthy of support in the "Sports Research" call opened within the scope of the "TÜBİTAK 1001-Scientific and Technological Research Projects Support Program" under the cooperation protocol signed between the Ministry of Youth and Sports and the Ministry of Industry and Technology.

Project leader Dr. Yılmaz provided information about the applications to be conducted on 30 children with autism and 30 typically developing children aged 6-10 within the scope of the project. Yılmaz shared the following about the project: “Our project will be conducted at Burdur Mehmet Akif Ersoy University Faculty of Sport Sciences. During the process, a team consisting of researchers from both MAKÜ and other universities will develop artificial intelligence-supported digital game and exercise applications. We will examine the effects of these applications on children. Great importance will be given to ethical rules and data privacy in the project."

Yılmaz stated that the project activities will be carried out within the framework of protocols made with Special Education Centers in Burdur. The aim of the project is to examine the effects of these applications on the motor skills, cognitive functions, repetitive behaviors, and daily living skills of children with autism and typically developing children with a holistic approach. This study, which will last for 24 months, will make a significant contribution to policies and practices related to children's development. Yılmaz expressed that they expect the project to inspire similar studies in Turkey and internationally, contributing to the development of new approaches aimed at improving the quality of life of children.