Current status: Answered by Richard Lochhead on 28 October 2025
To ask the Scottish Government how much funding will be committed to the National AI Adoption Programme in 2025-26, and how much of this will be committed to (a) grants and (b) loans.
In 2025-26, the Scottish Government committed £975,000 to the National AI Adoption Programme, reflecting its ongoing support for the responsible and inclusive uptake of AI across Scotland’s business community.
Of this total, £290,000 will be delivered as direct grant support to businesses. This includes £200,000 for AI Transformation Grants, which are aimed at helping SMEs discover, explore and implement AI solutions that can drive significant change within their organisations. An additional £90,000 will fund AI Exploration Vouchers, designed to support businesses at the early stages of their AI journey by enabling them to test and explore potential use cases.
No funding has been allocated to loans within the 2025-26 programme. The remainder of the budget will be used to deliver a range of complementary support activities — including expert advice, engagement events and targeted outreach — to help build confidence, capability and awareness around AI adoption across the wider economy.