Several government supports can help an Irish business pay for AI tools, expert help, training and implementation. Which ones apply depends on whether you deal with a Local Enterprise Office (LEO), which mainly supports micro and small businesses, or Enterprise Ireland. Every figure below links to its official source, and schemes are being renamed, so confirm the terms with the delivering body before you spend anything.
1. For LEO clients: the Grow Digital Voucher, 50% up to €5,000
The Grow Digital Voucher covers 50% of eligible costs, with a minimum grant of €500 and a maximum of €5,000. The Department of Enterprise, Tourism and Employment (DETE) says in its 14 October 2026 release that it is being renamed Grow Digital & AI, and its AI and digital supports page describes it as supporting AI tools, software and implementation.
Delivered through your Local Enterprise Office, it helps pay for new off-the-shelf software subscriptions for one year, plus training and IT configuration costs, including expert set-up help and staff training. Training and configuration combined can be no more than 50% of the project cost, and the tools listed include analytics software, including AI systems.
A few conditions apply, covering your business size, trading history and any earlier support you have received. Applications also need to go in before any spend begins, so speak to your LEO first.
2. For Enterprise Ireland clients: Digital Discovery, up to 80%
Enterprise Ireland, the government agency that supports Irish businesses that manufacture or sell internationally, offers Digital Discovery: up to 80% grant funding, capped at €5,000, to hire an expert. The 2026 brochure says the engagement runs for 3 to 7 days over an 8 to 12 week period, with eligible costs capped at €900 per day. It can be used to analyse existing digital, data or automation systems, explore ways to optimise them and get guidance on implementing new digital, data, automation or AI solutions, with data analytics and AI among the focus areas.
The brochure lists who can apply as Irish-based businesses in manufacturing or internationally traded services, and Enterprise Ireland high potential start-up clients. Enterprise Ireland's FAQ document adds several practical points:
- It gives a threshold of 10 or more full-time staff for eligible companies.
- Approval comes as a Letter of Offer, which must be signed before the engagement begins.
- It does not cover implementation, the purchase or configuration of off-the-shelf technology, or training.
- The offer is subject to budget availability under the EU's Digital Transition Fund up to 2026, so ask Enterprise Ireland whether it is still taking applications.
3. For Enterprise Ireland clients: Digital Process Innovation, up to €150,000
Enterprise Ireland's Digital Process Innovation brochure describes a grant of 50% of eligible costs up to a maximum of €150,000, for SMEs and large companies implementing new or significantly improved digital production methods, service delivery or organisational methods. The eligible costs it lists include salary costs for staff time on the project, reasonable external consultancy costs, materials and defined overheads. The project must involve some level of innovation or risk of failure and must not be focused on routine operational changes or responding to changes in regulation.
The National Enterprise Hub page gives further conditions: Enterprise Ireland client status, at least two years of trading, international trading or the potential for it in the short term, and a minimum project spend of €100,000. Enterprise Ireland's brochure says to consult your Enterprise Ireland Advisor before applying. Its AI for Business brochure positions Digital Discovery as the first stage of an AI pathway and this grant as the route for the final stage, operationalising AI, which includes integrating AI into existing IT systems and upskilling your team.
DETE's supports page also lists the Digital Transition Fund as a national fund supporting AI, cloud and cybersecurity, with 50% to 80% co-funding, best suited to larger, organisation-wide digital transformation. Enterprise Ireland's page for it gives no maximum grant or application process, so ask them directly.
4. Borrowing for the project: the Growth and Sustainability Loan Scheme
On 12 October 2026 the Department of Enterprise, Tourism and Employment announced that the Growth and Sustainability Loan Scheme will double from €500 million to €1 billion and run until 30 June 2029 or until it is fully subscribed. The published terms are:
- Loans from €25,000 to €3,000,000, repaid over seven to 10 years.
- Loans of up to €500,000 available unsecured.
- Open to SMEs, small mid-caps, farmers, foresters and fishers.
- Delivered by the Strategic Banking Corporation of Ireland (SBCI) through AIB, Bank of Ireland, PTSB, Close Brothers and Finance Ireland, with a guarantee from the EIB Group.
The EIB Group's announcement says AIB, Bank of Ireland and PTSB have reopened for new applications, with the other lenders expected to follow in the coming weeks. DETE lists digitalisation among the purposes the loans can support.
5. Why the money is there
DETE's Budget 2027 release of 7 October 2026 allocates €4.5 million to the Local Enterprise Offices, covering energy-efficiency upgrades for small businesses and LEO reform and modernisation. It describes the targeted LEO investment as supporting more small businesses to digitalise, adopt AI technologies, improve cybersecurity and reduce energy costs, but the items listed under that heading are the Energy Efficiency Grant and a new client relationship system, so it is not a new AI grant. The release also adds €2.3 million to the National AI Office, bringing its budget to €3.8 million, for AI Act implementation, an AI Regulatory Sandbox and a national AI literacy programme.
On 13 October DETE published a research report prepared for DETE on how AI is being adopted across Irish manufacturing, tourism, construction and ICT services. It reports that the share of Irish enterprises with 10 or more employees using AI rose from 8% in 2023 to 20% in 2025, against 58% of large enterprises. In its consultation, half of respondents described task-level use, 15% a pilot or embedded workflow and 10% a scaled or AI-native model.
Questions worth asking before you apply
Whichever support you look at, a short list of questions saves time:
- Which agency are you a client of? The Grow Digital Voucher excludes current Enterprise Ireland and IDA clients, while Digital Discovery and Digital Process Innovation are Enterprise Ireland supports.
- Can you describe the process you want to change, and the cost you expect, in a page before you apply? If not, contact us.
Our view
These supports tend to ask for the same thing: a clear, simple description of what you want to change and why.
At Barniville AI Consulting we can help you put that into plain language for your application. Once your grant has been accepted, come back to us for implementation.
Frequently asked questions
Is there government funding for AI for small businesses in Ireland?
Yes. The Department of Enterprise, Tourism and Employment and its agencies list several supports that can pay for AI tools, expert help, training or implementation. These include the Grow Digital Voucher through the Local Enterprise Offices, Digital Discovery and Digital Process Innovation through Enterprise Ireland, and the Growth and Sustainability Loan Scheme through the SBCI. Which one applies depends on your size, sector and which agency you deal with.
What is the Grow Digital Voucher?
The Grow Digital Voucher is a grant delivered through your Local Enterprise Office. It covers 50% of eligible costs, with a minimum grant of €500 and a maximum of €5,000 per application, towards new software subscriptions plus training and IT configuration. The Department of Enterprise, Tourism and Employment says it is being renamed Grow Digital & AI.
Can a government grant pay for an AI consultant in Ireland?
Two Enterprise Ireland supports can. Digital Discovery funds up to 80% of expert time, capped at a €5,000 grant, and Digital Process Innovation lists reasonable external consultancy costs among its eligible costs, with a grant of up to €150,000.