Please Note: The Artificial Intelligence (AI) Adoption Grant is currently paused to allow time to process applications.
It is expected that the Artificial Intelligence (AI) Adoption Grant will resume in early November 2026.
To register your interest, please fill out the contact form at the bottom of this page, and someone will be in touch when the Artificial Intelligence (AI) Adoption Grant resumes.
Registering your interest does not guarantee an application, as the fund amount is limited and treated on a first-come, first-served basis.
Are you an SME in the South of Scotland looking to adopt AI into your business?
An AI Adoption Grant will provide a revenue grant of up to £5000 to support SMEs to adopt AI technologies to improve efficiency, enhance productivity, and unlock organisational improvement.
What can I use the voucher for?
Uses of this grant may include (but are not limited to):
• Organisational AI readiness, strategy, leadership, and governance
• Specialist advice and mentoring
• Feasibility, testing, and development
• Integration and implementation
• Responsible, ethical, and inclusive use of AI
• Skills and organisational capability
I’m interested, tell me the detail?
- SMEs (including business and social enterprise) based in the Scottish Borders and/or Dumfries & Galloway are eligible to apply.
- SMEs must be based and operate within the South of Scotland.
- The minimum grant available is £1000 and the maximum is £5000.
- All eligible expenditure must be spent by 31st January 2027.
- AI Adoption Grants in the SOSE region are part of the National AI Adoption Programme for SMEs, being delivered by Scottish Government in partnership with South of Scotland Enterprise.
- Full criteria and eligibility can be found here.
How do I apply?
- Read the full criteria and eligibility to make sure you and your project fits requirements.
- Express an interest through our website by telling us a little bit about you and what you are proposing. Please include a quick outline of the project idea, and how it links to Artificial Intelligence adoption to improve your business.
- If your expression of interest meets the initial criteria, and funds are still available, SOSE will then send you an application form.
- Applications will be treated on a first-come-first-served basis and once indications show the fund limit is reached, expressions of interest will be paused until initial applicants have gone through the formal application and appraisal stage.
- Submitting an expression of interest does not guarantee that your application will be successful. If you are not successful in your application, we will arrange a call with you to let you know why you have been unsuccessful and point you in the direction of other possible sources of funding.
- Demand is expected to be high and therefore not all projects will be able to proceed as the fund amount is limited.
- SOSE grant funds are discretionary. SOSE decision will be final.