Federal and provincial governments have committed hundreds of millions of dollars to help Canadian small and medium-sized businesses implement AI, fund AI R&D, and train their teams on AI tools. The hard part is working out which programs actually fit your business. Answer a few quick questions and this checker will point you to the grants, loans, and tax credits worth a closer look.
Want to read about these programs first? Check out our blog post: Funding Your AI Transformation: Grants & Initiatives Available to BC Businesses.
For context on how we help, see our AI consulting, AI implementation, and AI training services.
General information only, not financial or legal advice. Program details change, so always confirm current eligibility with the program provider before applying.
Unfortunately, all of the programs we cover require Canadian incorporation. If that changes, come back and check again.
The programs we cover are designed for small and medium-sized businesses with fewer than 500 employees, so none of them are likely to be a fit right now. Larger organizations sometimes have other federal and provincial options, and we are happy to help you look into them.
Programs and criteria change often. Leave your email and we'll let you know if new options open up for businesses like yours. In the meantime, our overview, Funding Your AI Transformation: Grants & Initiatives Available to BC Businesses, covers the wider landscape.
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The information on this page is provided for general informational purposes only and reflects program details as understood at the time of writing. Eligibility criteria, funding amounts, and program availability can change. This tool does not constitute financial or legal advice. Always confirm current details directly with the program provider before making any decisions.
We'll email you the programs that came up, with the official links and what to confirm for each, so they're easy to find when you're ready to apply. We'll also let you know if anything important changes with these programs.
Rather talk it through now? VanteriQ helps BC businesses implement AI, access funding, and train their teams. Book a free consultation
The information on this page is provided for general informational purposes only and reflects program details as understood at the time of writing. Eligibility criteria, funding amounts, and program availability can change. This tool does not constitute financial or legal advice. Always confirm current details directly with the program provider before making any decisions.
Programs Covered
The checker covers seven federal and BC programs that fund AI implementation, AI research and development, and AI training for Canadian small and medium-sized businesses. Many of them can be combined, so it is worth looking at the full picture.
Lead with Innovation and Focus on Technology
Loans from $25,000 to $5 million to fund AI adoption, with the option to defer principal payments for up to two years and support from a BDC AI advisor.
Regional Artificial Intelligence Initiative
Interest-free repayable contributions of $500,000 to $3 million per project, covering up to 50% of eligible costs for BC businesses adopting or commercializing AI.
Industrial Research Assistance Program
Non-repayable funding covering up to 80% of eligible R&D salary costs and 50% of subcontractor costs, with first-time applicants typically receiving $75,000 to $200,000.
Scientific Research and Experimental Development
A federal tax credit that returns part of your eligible R&D spending, up to 35% refundable for Canadian-controlled private corporations, and it can be stacked with NRC IRAP.
BC Fast Pilot Program
Up to $200,000 to design, build, and run a pilot of your technology in real-world conditions with an early adopter customer.
Ignite Program
Up to $300,000 in matched funding for R&D projects run jointly with a BC university or college, with a focus on natural resources and applied sciences.
BC ETG
Reimburses 80% of eligible training costs, up to $10,000 per employee and $300,000 per employer each year.
Funding by Project Type
Most businesses come to us with one of four kinds of AI project. Each one lines up with a different set of programs, so knowing which kind of project you have is the fastest way to narrow down the funding worth applying for.
BDC LIFT · PacifiCan RAII
Putting AI to work in your operations, such as a document search assistant, automated intake, or AI built into your existing software. Adoption-focused programs fund this kind of project, subject to revenue, years in business, and a private funding share.
NRC IRAP · SR&ED · Innovate BC
When a build means solving a technical problem nobody has solved yet, it may count as R&D. That opens up non-repayable IRAP funding, SR&ED tax credits, and Innovate BC pilot and research funding. Configuring an existing product does not qualify.
BC Employer Training Grant
The Employer Training Grant can reimburse 80% of eligible training costs, up to $10,000 per employee. Our hands-on AI training for business teams typically meets its eligibility requirements, subject to WorkBC approval.
Every program
Every application asks what you will build, what it will cost, and what it will achieve. An AI consulting engagement answers those questions first, which is why it is usually the step that turns an idea into a project a funder can say yes to.
Looking at a specific industry? We have written about where AI pays off for law firms, accounting and financial services firms, real estate and property management, and engineering and technical teams.
Reading Your Results
Every program has a handful of hard requirements, like being incorporated, being based in BC, or reaching a minimum revenue. The checker tests your answers against those, then sorts each program into one of three groups so you can see where to spend your time.
Group 01
You meet every main criterion the checker tests for. That is a good reason to read the official program page and get in touch with the program, but it is not a guarantee of approval.
Group 02
The program could fit, but one of your answers was "Not sure" or sits on an edge, such as a one-person business applying to PacifiCan. The card tells you exactly what to confirm before you apply.
Group 03
A hard requirement ruled the program out, such as annual revenue under BDC LIFT's $1 million minimum or no academic partner for Ignite. The reason is shown so you know what would need to change.
Not Checked
Intake windows, remaining budget, credit checks, industry priorities, and the strength of your application are all outside what a two-minute quiz can judge. Each result card notes the extra requirements to keep in mind.
Types of Funding
The headline amounts are hard to compare because each program pays out differently. Before you pick one, think about when the money arrives, whether you pay it back, and how much of the project you need to carry yourself in the meantime.
Non-repayable
NRC IRAP, Innovate BC Fast Pilot, Innovate BC Ignite, and the BC Employer Training Grant do not need to be paid back. Most of them reimburse costs after you have spent the money, so you still need the cash flow to get the work started.
Interest-free
PacifiCan's Regional Artificial Intelligence Initiative covers up to half of eligible costs and is paid back without interest, on terms set in your contribution agreement. The other half has to come from private or internal funds.
Financing
BDC LIFT is a loan, with a standard credit check and the option to defer principal payments. It suits businesses that want to move quickly on a larger AI adoption project and are comfortable taking on debt to do it.
After the fact
SR&ED is claimed with your corporate tax return once the work is done. For a Canadian-controlled private corporation the refundable portion comes back as cash even if you owe no tax, but it arrives months after you have paid for the work, and claims are due within 18 months of your tax year end.
Combining Programs
Most AI projects do not line up neatly with a single program. The better approach is usually to map each phase of the work to the program built for it. Here is how that tends to look for the four kinds of projects the checker asks about.
BDC LIFT or PacifiCan RAII · BC ETG
A property manager in Surrey rolling out AI document search, for example, might finance the build through BDC LIFT or PacifiCan and use the Employer Training Grant to get staff comfortable with the new system. Keep in mind that PacifiCan's 50% private share cannot be made up of other government funding.
NRC IRAP · SR&ED
IRAP can fund the development phase, and SR&ED can recover part of the eligible costs IRAP does not cover. Government assistance reduces the spending you can claim for SR&ED, so the two will not pay for the same dollar twice, but together they can offset a large share of the project.
Innovate BC Fast Pilot
Once you have a working prototype and a customer willing to host a trial, Fast Pilot can fund the pilot itself. It is delivered with NRC IRAP, so businesses that already have a relationship with an Industrial Technology Advisor are a step ahead.
Innovate BC Ignite · SR&ED
Ignite matches funding for joint projects with a BC post-secondary partner. An engineering consultancy in Burnaby working with a local institution on an applied problem is a typical fit, and your company's own share of the eligible work may also count toward an SR&ED claim.
The order you apply in matters. Starting paid work before a program approves your project, or spending your private share before you know which program will match it, can cost you eligibility. If you expect to use more than one program, plan the sequence before the first invoice goes out. Our guide to AI funding for BC businesses covers each program in more depth.
Before You Apply
Applications move faster, and read stronger, when the basics are in place before you start the form. These are the five things every program on this page asks for in one way or another.
Funding follows a well-defined project, not the other way around. Most of our first conversations with businesses around Vancouver and the Lower Mainland are about scoping the work: which tasks are worth automating, what it would take to build, and what it would cost. That happens to be most of what a funding application asks for.
Questions
What BC business owners usually ask about funding AI implementation, AI training, and AI R&D.
Yes, it is free, and no. Your results appear on the page as soon as you answer the last question. Your answers stay in your browser unless you choose to email yourself a copy, which is handy if you want the official links and the list of things to confirm in your inbox for later.
No. The checker tests your answers against the main published eligibility criteria, so a match means the program is worth a serious look. The program itself makes the decision, and it will weigh things a short quiz cannot, such as intake windows, how much budget is left, credit history, and how well your application makes the case for the project.
Not through the research programs. NRC IRAP and SR&ED fund genuine R&D, and buying or configuring off-the-shelf software does not count. Larger adoption projects are a different story: BDC LIFT and PacifiCan RAII are built for businesses putting AI to work, subject to their revenue and size requirements. If the goal is getting staff to use the tools well, the BC Employer Training Grant can cover most of the cost of training from an approved provider.
Yes, in many cases. The BC Employer Training Grant reimburses 80% of eligible training costs, up to $10,000 per employee and $300,000 per employer each year. You apply through your Business BCeID account before the training starts, pay the provider, then claim the reimbursement. Short, hands-on sessions built around your team's actual work tend to be the simplest to get funded, and we provide the course outline and documentation the application asks for.
Sometimes. NRC IRAP can cover up to 50% of subcontractor costs on eligible R&D, which can include outside developers building something genuinely new. BDC LIFT and PacifiCan RAII fund AI adoption projects, and the cost of outside expertise is often part of those projects. BDC LIFT also pairs you with a BDC AI advisor. Check each program's eligible cost rules before you sign a contract, since work started before approval usually is not covered.
The test is whether you are solving a technical problem where the answer is not already known. An engineering firm in Richmond trying to get a model to reliably pull data out of unusual scanned drawings, after existing tools have failed, could qualify. Setting up a chatbot with a vendor's standard features, or connecting two systems through a documented API, would not.
Often, yes. Many of these programs are designed to work alongside each other, such as IRAP funding development while SR&ED recovers part of the remaining costs, or the Employer Training Grant covering staff training during an adoption project. There are limits, though. Government assistance reduces what you can claim for SR&ED, and PacifiCan requires your 50% share to come from private or internal funds, so plan the combination before you apply.
For every program in this checker, yes. Sole proprietors and partnerships are screened out on the first step, and Innovate BC Fast Pilot specifically requires incorporation in BC. If you are planning to incorporate anyway, it is worth talking to your accountant about timing so you can apply once the change is made.
Yes. BDC LIFT, NRC IRAP, and SR&ED are federal programs open to eligible businesses across Canada, and the checker will still show them if they fit. The PacifiCan, Innovate BC, and Employer Training Grant programs are specific to British Columbia, but most provinces run their own equivalents, so it is worth looking at what your home province offers.
It varies a lot by program. Grants like the Employer Training Grant and IRAP generally reimburse costs after you have paid them, larger contributions like PacifiCan's involve a longer review and a formal agreement, and SR&ED refunds only come after you file your tax return. Whatever the program, budget to carry the costs yourself for a while and do not start paid work until your project is approved.
The details reflect our understanding of each program at the time of writing. Funding programs change often, including amounts, intake windows, and eligibility rules, so each result links to the official program page. Treat that page as the final word before you apply.
We help with the part most applications hinge on: scoping the AI project, estimating what it will cost, and writing up the technical plan and expected outcomes. For AI training, we provide the course outline and documentation the Employer Training Grant asks for. The application itself comes from your business, and for SR&ED claims many companies also work with their accountant. We meet with businesses in person anywhere in Metro Vancouver, from North Vancouver to Langley, and the first conversation is free.