The short answer
In October 2026 there is no open grant in BC that pays a small business to buy AI software or hire someone to build AI. What is open: BDC loans, including LIFT, built for AI and digital projects if you have $1 million or more in revenue; the B.C. Employer Training Grant for formal training from an eligible provider (not consulting); and the StrongerBC future skills grant for individual staff taking short courses at public colleges and universities. The Canada Digital Adoption Program is closed, PacifiCan's Regional AI Initiative is not taking applications, and IRAP and SR&ED only help if you are doing real research and development.
Status table
| Program | What it can pay for | Status (Oct 12, 2026) | Who it fits | Official page |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| BDC LIFT, digital and AI | Loans of $25,000 to $2 million for AI use cases, CRM and ERP, data, cybersecurity, training and integration | Open | $1M+ revenue, profitable, BDC Digital Plan, Canadian suppliers | bdc.ca |
| BDC Technology Equipment Loan | Hardware, software including AI, IT advice | Open | 12+ months of revenue, good credit | bdc.ca |
| B.C. Employer Training Grant | 80% of eligible training, up to $10,000 per person and $300,000 per employer a year | Open for 2026/27 | Formal training from an eligible provider | workbc.ca |
| StrongerBC future skills grant | Up to $3,500 per person for short courses at BC public post-secondaries | Open for 2026/27 | BC residents 19+, applying as individuals | educationplannerbc.ca |
| NRC IRAP | Advice and, in some cases, funding for R&D of new products | Open, through an advisor | Incorporated tech developers, up to 500 staff | nrc.canada.ca |
| PacifiCan Regional AI Initiative | $500,000 to $3 million, repayable, mainly AI commercialization | Not accepting applications | Larger AI projects | canada.ca |
| SR&ED tax incentives | Tax credits on eligible R&D spending | Open, claimed with your tax return | Work that resolves a technological uncertainty | canada.ca |
| Canada Digital Adoption Program | Was: 90% of a digital plan up to $15,000, plus a 0% loan | Closed | No new applicants | bdc.ca |
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Book a callBDC LIFT: the main route for AI projects
BDC launched LIFT on April 24, 2026, with $500 million earmarked to help more than 1,000 small and medium businesses adopt AI. BDC's release also says only 30% of Canadian SMEs used AI in 2025 (BDC news release). LIFT is a loan, not a grant.
BDC's digital and AI page lists:
- Loans from $25,000 to $2 million, with capital payments postponed up to 12 months and amortization up to 6 years.
- Things you can finance, including AI use-case development and implementation, CRM and ERP systems, data infrastructure, cybersecurity, and "training and integration (adoption costs)".
- Minimum requirements: a Canadian business with at least $1 million in revenue, a strong financial foundation and credit history, demonstrated profitability, and a mandatory BDC Advisory Services Digital Plan.
- You must work with qualified Canadian AI, digital or integration suppliers, and preferential rates apply when solutions come from Canadian suppliers.
The news release describes LIFT more broadly (loans up to $5 million and principal postponed up to two years) because LIFT also covers equipment such as robotics. For an AI software project, go by the digital and AI page. I could not find the price of the Digital Plan on BDC's pages, or whether suppliers must be registered with BDC in advance; BDC says your advisor helps you check whether a supplier counts as Canadian. Ask before you sign with anyone.
Under $1 million in revenue? BDC's Technology Equipment Loan lists AI and specialized software, and expert advice on IT planning, among its uses, with interest-only payments for the first 24 months and up to 8 years to repay. It asks for 12 months or more of revenue; the page does not state a maximum amount. The online Small Business Loan goes up to $350,000, with faster approval up to $100,000 for profitable businesses with $100,000 or more in revenue and 24 months in business.
B.C. Employer Training Grant: what it covers and excludes
The ETG opened for 2026/27 on March 23, 2026, for training that starts on or after April 1, 2026 (what's new). It reimburses 80% of eligible training costs, up to $10,000 per participant and $300,000 per employer per fiscal year (April 1 to March 31). The rules below come from the eligibility criteria effective March 23, 2026 and the ETG FAQ.
It pays for: tuition, mandatory student fees, exam fees, textbooks and the software or materials needed for the training, and some travel.
It does not pay for: consulting, coaching, retreats, mentorships, trade shows, annual meetings, networking, seminars, conferences or paid practicums. Nor software licences the business keeps, laptops or other hardware, or wages during training.
The provider must be independent of you, based in BC (outside BC only in exceptional cases), and deliver training as a main business activity: public post-secondaries, SkilledTradesBC schools, private training institutions or industry associations. A private provider with a program of 40+ hours and $4,000+ tuition must be certified by the Private Training Institutions Regulatory Unit.
You must apply yourself with a Business BCeID (grant writers and trainers cannot apply for you), have operated for at least a year, apply before training starts, and train Canadian citizens, permanent residents or protected persons. The training must lead to better job security or a better job. Decisions take up to 60 days, and the grant is taxable.
Priority points go to first-time applicants, small businesses, training at a BC public post-secondary, and priority industries, a list that includes "AI and Quantum Computing". When money runs short, lower-priority applications may be returned unassessed.
What this means for AI: a structured AI course from a college, university or certified training institution can fit. Hiring a consultant to set up AI, or a one-off seminar, does not. If you are unsure, email [email protected] before you book. On our own work: we have not confirmed that Aitoflo workshops qualify, and we do not claim they do.
Canada Job Grant and other workforce programs
In BC there is no separate Canada Job Grant to apply for. Federal money for employer training reaches BC through the Workforce Development Agreement, and the province delivers it through the ETG and other programs; BC is receiving $99.1 million in WDA funding for 2025/26 (WorkBC). The ETG criteria still mention the Canada Job Grant, to say the same training cannot be funded twice.
- StrongerBC future skills grant: BC residents 19+ can get up to $3,500 for eligible short-term training at a public post-secondary, and "AI & Quantum" is one of the program areas. Applications are open for 2026/27 (EducationPlannerBC). Your staff apply as individuals.
- Community Workforce Response Grant: funds cohort-based skills training projects. Intake 3 closes October 23, 2026 at 4:30 pm PT (WorkBC). It is built for community and sector training, not one company's AI project. I did not confirm whether a single business can apply; check the applicant guide.
IRAP: for building new technology, not buying it
NRC IRAP offers advice and, in some cases, funding to incorporated, for-profit Canadian businesses with up to 500 employees that "develop and commercialize innovative, technology-driven products or services". It does not fund day-to-day operating costs or "non-technical or purely commercial activities" (NRC IRAP). Buying an AI receptionist will not qualify. Building AI into a product you sell might.
IRAP also runs AI Assist for small businesses building generative AI or deep learning into their own products. Under its 2025 call for delivery partners, a referred business pays a $500 flat fee for up to 20 hours of AI advice over up to four months (NRC). I could not confirm whether referrals are open to BC businesses today; ask an IRAP advisor at 1-877-994-4727. NRC also says IRAP will move into the new Canada Innovation Corporation no later than 2026-27 (NRC).
PacifiCan's Regional AI Initiative: closed for now
PacifiCan's page, updated September 18, 2026, lists the Regional Artificial Intelligence Initiative as "Not currently accepting applications". When open, it offers businesses $500,000 to $3 million per project as repayable contributions, focused on commercializing AI; projects that only adopt existing AI "may be considered on an exceptional basis". Canada's national AI strategy, AI for All, adds $500 million to expand the initiative, and PacifiCan says to "check back soon" (PacifiCan). For a 10-person business buying AI, it is not a fit.
CDAP: closed
The Canada Digital Adoption Program is not taking applications. Its Boost Your Business Technology stream needed a signed grant agreement before February 19, 2024; it covered 90% of an advisor's digital plan up to $15,000, plus a 0% BDC loan of up to $100,000 (BDC). The Grow Your Business Online stream stopped taking applications on September 30, 2024 (Digital Main Street, a delivery partner). I found no replacement grant; LIFT is the closest thing, and it is a loan.
SR&ED: only for real R&D inside a custom build
SR&ED rewards work done in Canada for "a technological advancement" through "a systematic investigation", and what counts is that the knowledge gained moves technology forward, "not how the work advanced your business" (CRA). Setting up a voice agent or connecting your CRM with known methods is, in my reading, unlikely to qualify. A custom build that had to solve a problem nobody knew how to solve might.
Two 2026 changes matter. Bill C-15 received Royal Assent on March 26, 2026, raising the expenditure limit for the enhanced 35% investment tax credit from $3 million to $6 million, for tax years that begin after December 15, 2024. And since April 1, 2026 you can ask CRA for pre-claim approval before you start, with a decision within eight weeks (CRA SR&ED updates). Who can claim when an outside firm does the work depends on the contract, so talk to your accountant before you sign.
What I would do
- Decide what you are paying for: training your people, or building and running AI. Different programs apply.
- For training: choose the course and provider first, confirm ETG eligibility with [email protected], and apply at least 60 days before it starts.
- For a build, with $1 million or more in revenue: talk to BDC about LIFT before you sign with any supplier, because the Digital Plan comes first.
- For a build, under $1 million: a BDC technology loan, your bank, or cash flow. Start with one small job that pays for itself, then add the next.
- If you are building new technology: call IRAP, and ask CRA about SR&ED pre-claim approval.
Whatever route you take, we give you one clear price after a free 30-minute call, in a written plan you can take to BDC or your bank. Each program decides its own eligibility, and we make no claim that our work qualifies for any of them. See what we build with AI agents and voice AI, our custom software, and our team workshops, or read what AI automation costs in Vancouver. We work in person across Metro Vancouver, from Vancouver to Surrey and Burnaby.
What I could not confirm
- The price of BDC's Advisory Services Digital Plan, and whether LIFT suppliers must be registered in advance.
- The maximum amount of BDC's Technology Equipment Loan.
- Whether IRAP AI Assist referrals are open to BC businesses today.
- Whether a single business can apply to the Community Workforce Response Grant.
- When PacifiCan's Regional AI Initiative reopens.
- Whether any specific AI workshop, ours included, is ETG-eligible. Only the ETG team can say.