Funding
Canadian government programs were written to fund exactly this kind of work — diagnostics, roadmaps, implementation planning. Here's what they cover and who qualifies.
First — does this apply to you?
These are provincial programs. Ontario and Quebec have the clearest routes today. Other provinces have their own agencies worth checking.
Quebec's ESSOR caps at 250 employees. Ontario's DMAP caps at 499. Above that, these particular programs don't apply.
These programs fund businesses. Some also require a minimum revenue — Quebec's, for instance.
Feasibility studies, digital diagnostics, roadmaps and implementation planning are exactly what these programs were designed to pay for.
How it usually runs
The two steps are linked on purpose. Completing the first is normally what qualifies you for the second, so the first engagement isn't just cheaper — it opens the larger one.
An AI opportunity audit and a sequenced roadmap. In Ontario, DMAP may cover up to $15,000 of a plan like this. In Quebec, ESSOR's first component plays the same role.
Acting on the plan. Ontario's implementation stream may cover up to $50,000; Quebec's ESSOR may cover up to 50% of eligible costs to the same ceiling.
Who does what
The funding is paid to you, not to us, so the application is yours to file and yours to qualify for. We'll help you scope the engagement so it fits what the program funds.
The audit, the roadmap, the build. Priced the same whether or not you're funded — we don't mark up work because a program is paying for it.
We're based in Quebec. For Ontario clients that changes nothing: DMAP funds the Ontario business, and you can spend it with an advisor from anywhere. We are not an accredited or approved provider of any program, and we can't guarantee an award.
Questions
Then these two don't apply, but your province may have its own innovation agency, and federal SR&ED applies if you build software in-house. Tell us where you are and we'll look into it.
The SME adoption programs won't fit. Scale AI co-funds larger industry-led projects and is structured differently — worth a conversation.
There's no federal US equivalent of a Canadian adoption grant. Where the spend is training, state workforce funds are the usual route. Otherwise it's a direct purchase.
The engagement and its price stand on their own. We scope to what you want to achieve, not to what a program might pay for.
Program terms change — one major federal program closed in 2024 and an Ontario training grant has been paused since late 2025. We re-check status before it goes in a proposal, and you should confirm with the program directly before relying on it.