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Singapore AI Grants for SMEs and Social Service Agencies

By Ryo Leong

Grants, free advisory and financing help in 2026, who they are for, and what to decide before you apply

Please check before you apply. Grant terms change often, and a major change takes effect this month. This guide summarises official information as at 26 September 2026 and links to each source. It is not financial advice, and I am not an approved grant consultant or vendor. Always confirm details on the official page.

A grant can pay for part of a tool. It cannot tell you which workflow to change, or whether your team will use what you buy. Decide those first, and the grant becomes an accelerator for a plan you already believe in.

With that in mind, here is what is available.

For SMEs

A big change: the EDGE Grant. Enterprise Singapore has announced that the Enterprise Development Grant (EDG), the Market Readiness Assistance (MRA) grant and the Productivity Solutions Grant (PSG) cease on 29 September 2026. From 30 September 2026, new applications go to the EDGE Grant. Ongoing EDG, MRA and PSG submissions and projects continue to be processed.

According to Enterprise Singapore, the EDGE Grant covers eight business areas and more than 100 activities, including automation and digitalisation, business strategy and innovation. Support is “up to 70%” for SMEs and “up to 50%” for non-SMEs, and support levels differ by activity. Businesses can access “up to S$100,000 in total grant support per year, across all activities”, with the cap refreshed on 1 April each year. Grants are paid on a reimbursement basis after the project is completed and paid for.

The National AI Impact Programme. Announced in March 2026, this Government programme aims to “support 10,000 enterprises over the next three years to advance their AI adoption journey.” According to IMDA, it includes pre-approved AI solutions from established vendors with grant support, and the Digital Leaders Accelerator Bootcamp, which gives business leaders hands-on help to develop AI projects and a digital roadmap.

CTO-as-a-Service. IMDA’s CTO-as-a-Service offers a digital readiness assessment and access to digital consultants for SMEs. In January 2026, the Government described it as offering “over 300 pre-approved digital solutions supported by the Productivity Solutions Grant.” With PSG ceasing, check IMDA’s site for how these solutions are supported under the EDGE Grant.

Free advisory and financing help for SMEs

Grants are one part of the picture. Several free services help you decide what to apply for and how to pay for the rest.

SME Centre@ASME. Run by the Association of Small and Medium Enterprises, the SME Centre offers one-to-one business advisory, help with government grants and financing options, and capability workshops, including on AI adoption. Its advisory services are free. Across Singapore, SME Centres ran more than 40 AI capability workshops over the past year, reaching nearly 2,000 SMEs, according to Senior Minister of State Low Yen Ling in September 2026. Book an appointment through Enterprise Singapore’s booking page.

ASME’s AI Foundry. Announced in January 2026, ASME’s AI Foundry programme works with Lenovo, which is providing “up to $1 million in hardware, engineering support and training services” to develop ten real-world AI prototypes with Singapore SMEs. Check with ASME on how to take part.

Centre for Enterprise Financing Advisory (CEFA). Launched on 18 May 2026 by the Singapore Business Federation and Enterprise Singapore, CEFA helps businesses understand their financing options, strengthen their financial readiness and connect with financing partners. Its advisory is free, and its Financial Health Check toolkit is a useful first step. This matters because EDGE Grant support is paid on reimbursement: you need to fund the project first.

BusinessSG (BizSG). A new whole-of-government initiative, launching on 30 September 2026, to make it simpler for businesses to find government services and grants. Its grant recommender helps you match your needs to available support.

For social service agencies

The Transformation Sustainability Scheme (TSS). NCSS’s TSS has replaced the earlier Tech-and-GO! scheme. It supports social service agencies to strengthen their organisations, including through digitalisation, with “up to 80% co-funding” for “up to 3-years”. It has three parts:

  • Part A, consultancy and project implementation: “up to $250,000”, with headcount support capped at $200,000.
  • Part B, bespoke digitalisation projects: “up to $150,000”. NCSS lists AI chatbots among the examples.
  • Part C, pre-scoped and green-laned solutions: “up to $150,000 in total”, and “up to $40,000 per solution”.

Eligible agencies need, among other criteria, at least two years of continuous operation and a valid Organisational Health Framework assessment. Applications go through the OurSG Grants portal. The NCSS page was last updated on 17 August 2026.

Note that charities, voluntary welfare organisations and societies were not eligible for PSG. If you are a social service agency, start with NCSS.

At a glance (as at 26 September 2026)

SMEs: EDGE Grant from 30 September 2026, up to 70% support, up to S$100,000 a year across activities.

SMEs: National AI Impact Programme, including pre-approved AI solutions and the Digital Leaders Accelerator Bootcamp.

SMEs: free advice from SME Centre@ASME, and free financing advisory from CEFA.

SMEs: BizSG grant recommender, from 30 September 2026.

Social service agencies: NCSS Transformation Sustainability Scheme, up to 80% co-funding for up to three years.

Before you apply

Grants reward clear plans. Before you fill in a form, you should be able to say:

  1. which strategic goal the project serves;
  2. which workflow will change, and who owns it;
  3. why this solution, and why a simpler one would not do;
  4. how your people will be brought along;
  5. what you expect to change, and by when.

These are the same questions I use in an Opportunity Play, my one-page brief for each AI opportunity. A project that can answer them is easier to fund, and easier to make work.

One more check: some schemes fund consultancy or pre-approved solutions only from qualifying providers. Confirm that a provider qualifies before you assume their work is covered.

Where to start

If you are not sure which project to fund, start with the five questions in my free guide, The Question Before the Tool.

If a grant covered half the cost tomorrow, would you know exactly which workflow to change?

rYo

Sources (all accessed 26 September 2026)

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