How Canadian funding may help pay for the work.
A plain guide to the programs that come up most when a Canadian business pays for AI work: what each one is, who it suits, and where our work does and doesn’t fit.
We don’t administer grants. Here’s what exists; check with the program and your accountant.
Why AI dips before it pays.
Economists at the C.D. Howe Institute describe a “Productivity J-curve”: when a business adopts a new general-purpose technology, measured productivity falls before it rises, because the configuration and reorganization cost shows up long before the payoff does.
In our experience, that dip is where AI initiatives stall. We aim for the opposite shape: bounded systems with low setup cost and value you can see in the first weeks, not a platform that might pay off in year 2. Where a program fits, it may cover part of the upfront cost, which shortens the payback further.
Four programs worth knowing about.
What each one is, who it suits, and where our work does and doesn’t fit. We don’t administer grants or file applications. The plain-language version comes first in each entry.
-
BDC LIFT
A loan for AI adoption, not a grant.
Where we fit: our AI Roadmap doesn’t replace BDC’s own plan.
The Business Development Bank of Canada launched LIFT in April 2026 to finance AI and digital adoption. For its AI track, BDC lists these minimums: at least $1M in revenue, demonstrated profitability, a completed BDC Advisory Services Digital Plan, and working with qualified Canadian AI, digital or integration providers. Loans run from $25K to $2M.
The Digital Plan is BDC’s own, so our roadmap doesn’t stand in for it. Whether a given supplier counts as a qualified Canadian provider is BDC’s call, so ask them.
-
Ontario Job Grant
Help with training costs, from accredited providers only.
Where we fit: we don’t. Our Team Workshops aren’t eligible.
The Ontario Job Grant replaced the Canada-Ontario Job Grant in 2026 and takes applications year-round. Employers with fewer than 100 staff pay at least one-sixth of training costs, so the grant can cover up to about 83%, to a maximum of $10,000 per trainee; larger employers get half.
The training has to come from an eligible provider: a publicly assisted college, university or Indigenous Institute, a district school board, a registered career college, a union-based training centre, a sector council or an industry association. We’re none of those, so our workshops don’t qualify. The program also excludes business consulting. It suits college-delivered training.
-
Productivity Super-Deduction
Faster tax write-offs for capital investment.
Where we fit: your accountant’s call. We itemize Workflow Automation invoices so they can judge.
Announced in Budget 2025 and now law (Bill C-15 received Royal Assent on 26 March 2026), the Super-Deduction is a set of faster write-offs for new capital investment, including immediate expensing for some productivity assets such as computers and data network infrastructure.
Whether any part of an automation build counts as a capital asset, or is simply a regular business expense, is your accountant’s call. We invoice line by line so they have clean items to assess.
-
FedDev Ontario AI Adoption
Repayable funding for larger AI projects in southern Ontario.
Where we fit: only in a larger program of work.
The AI Adoption stream of FedDev Ontario’s Regional AI Initiative offers $125K to $5M as a repayable contribution, covering up to 50% of eligible costs. Applicants need at least three years of operations, at least 5 and fewer than 500 full-time-equivalent staff, and to be located and operating in southern Ontario. The current intake runs from 13 October 2026 to 19 January 2027; apply by 24 November 2026 if your project’s costs start before 31 March 2027.
At up to 50% cost share, the smallest contribution implies a project of roughly $250K or more. It suits a larger adoption program, not a single workshop or build.
Program details above were checked against each program’s own pages in October 2026 and can change. Nothing here is a guarantee of eligibility or approval. See the note below, and the published pricing for current bands.
Before you spend a dollar.
Plain answers on eligibility and risk. If yours isn’t here, raise it on the intro call.
Can you guarantee we’ll get the funding?
No, and anyone who does is overselling. We don’t administer grants or file applications. Eligibility, amounts and availability depend on your situation and each program’s current terms; the program decides, and your accountant decides the tax treatment. What we can do is tell you what exists, keep our invoices itemized, and be plain about where our work doesn’t fit.
Can the Ontario Job Grant pay for your workshops?
No. The grant only funds training from eligible providers such as colleges, career colleges, union training centres, sector councils and industry associations. We’re not one of them, so our workshops don’t qualify. If the grant matters to you, look for a course from one of those providers. Our workshops are priced to stand on their own.
What if we’re not eligible for any program?
The work still has to pay back on its own; that’s why we scope bounded systems with low setup cost and value you can see early. Funding shortens the payback; it isn’t the whole case. The AI Roadmap is fixed-price and yours to keep, whether you build with us or anyone else, and you can cancel any time, paying only for work delivered. You’re never buying a subsidy you might not get.
Check the funding before you spend the cash.
A free 30-minute intro call. Tell us what you want to do (a roadmap, a workshop, an automation) and we’ll tell you which programs may realistically fit, which don’t, and what the work costs. If it isn’t the right fit, we’ll say so. If it is, you’ll have a scope and a fixed price by the next morning.
We reply within one business day. No sales spam. Cancel any time and pay only for work delivered.