Technology and AI programs for small businesses

Ranked programs

31 open, ongoing or intake-based programs, best score first.

1. Scientific Research and Experimental Development (SR&ED) Tax Incentive

   Canada Revenue Agency

   Tax deduction plus investment tax credit for businesses conducting eligible R&D in Canada. Most CCPCs earn an enhanced, refundable 35% ITC up to an expenditure limit...

   OngoingFederalOther incentivesLimit $6M
   56

   Top pick

2. OCI Digital Competence Centre

   Ontario Centre of Innovation (OCI)

   Digital adoption support for Ontario SMEs, including funded digital modernization plans and technology demonstration projects.

   OpenOntarioGrantsUp to $50K
   46

   Strong

3. Ontario Innovation Tax Credit (OITC)

   Ontario Ministry of Finance / Canada Revenue Agency

   Refundable credit on qualifying scientific research and experimental development (SR&ED) expenditures performed in Ontario by eligible corporations. Helps smaller...

   OngoingOntarioOther incentivesLimit $240K
   45

   Strong

4. Mitacs Accelerate

   Mitacs

   Matches partner contributions to fund research internships connecting businesses and organizations with university researchers and trainees.

   OngoingFederalGrants
   41

   Strong

5. NGen Industrial AI Readiness Program

   NGen with NRC IRAP

   Reimburses SME manufacturers for professional fees of AI service providers for readiness evaluations and implementation plans.

   OpenFederalGrantsUp to $15K
   41

   Strong

6. Mitacs AI Advantage (ADOPT and AI+X)

   Mitacs

   Non-competitive Mitacs offerings supporting organizations to adopt and innovate with AI through trainee-led projects: ADOPT (AI readiness to implementation) and AI+X...

   OpenFederalGrantsUp to $25K
   39

   Strong

7. FedDev Ontario - Regional Artificial Intelligence Initiative (RAII)

   FedDev Ontario

   Funded AI commercialization and AI adoption projects in southern Ontario. Intake has ended.

   OpenFederalGrantsUp to $700M
   37

   Worth a look

8. BDC Loan for Tech Companies

   Business Development Bank of Canada

   Flexible loans for revenue-generating technology companies that want to scale without giving up shares.

   OngoingFederalLoans
   34

   Worth a look

9. NSERC Alliance grants and Ontario Centre of Innovation Collaborate 2 Commercialize (C2C)

   NSERC and Ontario Centre of Innovation (OCI)

   A joint streamlined funding stream that matches an Ontario company with an Ontario university researcher for a short research collaboration, combining NSERC Alliance...

   OngoingFederalGrantsUp to $50K
   31

   Worth a look

10. FedNor - Regional Artificial Intelligence Initiative (RAII)

    FedNor

    Helps Northern Ontario SMEs, not-for-profits, Indigenous organizations and municipalities commercialize and adopt AI. For-profits normally receive repayable...

    OngoingFederalLoansLoans up to $700M
    30

    Worth a look

11. Innovative Solutions Canada (Challenge and Testing streams)

    ISED / federal departments

    Innovative Solutions Canada funds Canadian small businesses to develop and test prototypes that solve problems set by federal departments (Challenge stream), and buys...

    OpenFederalGrantsUp to $1.5M
    29

    Worth a look

12. NRC Industrial Research Assistance Program (NRC IRAP) - Financial support for technology innovation

    National Research Council Canada (NRC IRAP)

    NRC IRAP provides advice, connections and funding to help Canadian SMEs develop and commercialize technology-driven products, services and processes. Funding follows...

    OngoingFederalGrants
    29

    Worth a look

13. Innovation for Defence Excellence and Security (IDEaS)

    Department of National Defence

    DND's IDEaS program funds innovators, from individuals to large firms, to solve defence and security challenges through five elements: Competitive Projects, Innovation...

    Intake-basedFederalGrantsUp to $6.8M
    27

    Worth a look

14. Ontario Creates Futures Forward Program

    Ontario Creates

    Early-stage development funding for emerging interactive and linear content creators who complete the Futures Forward workshop.

    OpenOntarioGrantsUp to $20K
    24

    Long shot

15. OVIN Technology Pilot Zones

    Ontario Centre of Innovation (OVIN)

    Gives Ontario SMEs real-world environments to pilot automotive and mobility solutions.

    Intake-basedOntarioOther incentivesUp to $100K
    24

    Long shot

16. FedNor - Regional Economic Growth through Innovation (REGI)

    FedNor

    Supports Northern Ontario business growth (Targeted Manufacturing Initiative) and regional innovation ecosystems (not-for-profits).

    OngoingFederalLoansLoans up to $500K
    23

    Long shot

17. NRC IRAP Clean Technology support

    National Research Council Canada (NRC IRAP)

    Support for Canadian SMEs to develop and advance clean technologies from proof of concept through larger multi-year projects to commercialization. Delivered by NRC IRAP...

    OngoingFederalGrants
    23

    Long shot

18. Canadian Technology Accelerators (CTAs)

    Trade Commissioner Service (Global Affairs Canada)

    Free, equity-free business development programs that take high-growth Canadian tech companies into global tech hubs to meet partners, customers and investors.

    Intake-basedFederalOther incentives
    20

    Long shot

19. OVIN R&D Partnership Fund

    Ontario Centre of Innovation (OVIN)

    Co-investment for SMEs developing and demonstrating automotive and mobility technologies (connected/autonomous vehicles, EVs, charging, semiconductors).

    Intake-basedOntarioGrantsUp to $1M
    20

    Long shot

20. CanExport Innovation

    Trade Commissioner Service (Global Affairs Canada)

    Covers costs of pursuing and signing collaborative R&D agreements with international partners.

    Intake-basedFederalGrantsUp to $38K
    19

    Long shot

21. FedDev Ontario - Funding for businesses to innovate, grow and compete (REGI Business Scale-up and Productivity)

    Federal Economic Development Agency for Southern Ontario (FedDev Ontario)

    Interest-free, unconditionally repayable contributions for southern Ontario businesses to innovate, scale up, adopt technology and commercialize. Covers new project...

    OngoingFederalLoansLoans up to $10M
    19

    Long shot

22. Innovation Partnership Program (Trade Commissioner Service)

    Trade Commissioner Service (Global Affairs Canada)

    Support and funding for Canadian innovators to join international innovation missions and build co-innovation partnerships.

    Intake-basedFederalGrants
    19

    Long shot

23. Ontario Creates Intellectual Property (IP) Fund

    Ontario Creates

    Ontario Creates' main screen-content fund, with three streams: Linear Content (development and production of feature films and digital series), Interactive Content...

    Intake-basedOntarioGrantsUp to $500K
    17

    Long shot

24. FedNor - Regional Homebuilding Innovation Initiative (Northern Ontario)

    FedNor

    Supports Northern Ontario businesses and organizations strengthening the housing supply chain and residential construction innovation. Commercial projects are generally...

    Intake-basedFederalLoansLoans up to $500K
    14

    Long shot

25. Protein Industries Canada - Artificial Intelligence program

    Protein Industries Canada (Global Innovation Cluster)

    Co-invests in collaborative consortia using AI in the plant-based food, feed and ingredients value chain, with $30 million to be invested through March 31, 2028.

    OngoingFederalGrants
    13

    Long shot

26. Protein Industries Canada - Technology Leadership program

    Protein Industries Canada (Global Innovation Cluster)

    Co-invests in collaborative consortia developing plant-based food, feed and ingredient technologies, including Ontario companies and processors.

    OngoingFederalGrants
    13

    Long shot

27. Canada's Ocean Supercluster - Technology Leadership and Innovation Ecosystem projects

    Canada's Ocean Supercluster (Global Innovation Cluster)

    Co-invests in industry-led ocean technology consortium projects and ecosystem-building activities. Open to Ontario firms that join consortia.

    OngoingFederalGrants
    12

    Long shot

28. FedNor - Regional Defence Investment Initiative (RDII)

    FedNor

    Supports Northern Ontario businesses, not-for-profits and Indigenous-led organizations meeting a specific military need in the defence supply chain.

    Intake-basedFederalLoans
    12

    Long shot

29. Regional Development Program: Advanced Manufacturing and Innovation Competitiveness (AMIC) Stream

    Ministry of Economic Development, Job Creation and Trade

    Financial support to advanced manufacturing companies, with a focus on SMEs, for capital equipment, technology adoption and skills development to improve competitiveness.

    Intake-basedOntarioGrants
    12

    Long shot

30. DIGITAL Supercluster - Calls for Projects

    Digital Technology Supercluster (DIGITAL)

    Co-investment in industry-led digital technology projects through member consortia.

    Intake-basedFederalGrants
    6

    Long shot

31. BDC Capital - Venture Capital

    BDC Capital

    BDC Capital's Venture Capital arm makes direct equity investments in Canadian technology and innovation companies through sector and stage funds (Seed, Growth, Life...

    OngoingFederalOther incentives
    3

    Long shot

Questions

How many technology and ai programs for small businesses are open right now?

Of the 52 technology and ai programs for small businesses in our database, 20 are open or ongoing and 11 take applications only in intake windows. The rest are closed, paused or of unknown status, so they are not ranked on this page. Counts reflect our last check on Nov 4, 2026; programs can change without notice.

What is the largest published amount among these programs?

FedDev Ontario - Regional Artificial Intelligence Initiative (RAII) publishes the largest figure on this page, shown as "Up to $700M". Published figures are program maximums, caps or limits, not what an applicant should expect to receive; many programs pay a share of eligible costs and amounts depend on your project and eligibility.

Which technology and ai programs for small businesses rank highest?

Right now the top three by our score are Scientific Research and Experimental Development Tax Incentive (56, Top pick), OCI Digital Competence Centre (46, Strong), Ontario Innovation Tax Credit (45, Strong). The score combines the size of the published amount, how much work an application takes, how likely an eligible applicant is to succeed and how many people qualify.

Do I have to pay this money back?

It depends on the program. Grants and incentives are generally not repaid, loans always are, and some contribution agreements are partly or fully repayable, so read the terms of each program. Among the 20 open or ongoing programs here, 13 are in our Grants category, 4 are loans and 3 are other incentives such as tax credits and rebates.

Are these federal or Ontario programs?

17 of the 20 open or ongoing programs here come from the federal government and 3 from the Ontario government. Both levels can usually be combined, but many programs have stacking rules that cap total government funding for the same costs, so check them before you apply.

Is this an official government website?

No. Grants & Loans Finder is an independent research tool. Each program page links to the official source, and applications are always made with the government agency or lender that runs the program.