Government AI Upskilling Fund for SMEs

The Department for Science, Innovation and Technology (DSIT) recently announced a £7.4 million pilot scheme to subsidise the cost of AI skills training for small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) in the Professional Business Services (PBS) sector. Of this, £6.4 million is available. This pilot is funded through the £37.5 million Labour Market Evaluations and Pilots fund (LMEP), announced by the Chancellor at Spring Budget 2023.

Evidence shows that a lack of AI skills in businesses is hindering AI adoption, in part due to low investment in AI upskilling by UK businesses. This is particularly true in smaller companies. The pilot aims to increase AI adoption and productivity by incentivising greater employer-led investment in skills and training. 

Eligible businesses can apply for funding for up to 50% of the cost of AI skills training and other AI upskilling activities. The training should support employees to develop their technical skills and/or understanding of AI, helping them develop, deploy, or use AI in their role. 

Specifically, the objectives of the pilot are to: 

• stimulate employer investment in AI training
• address AI skills gaps in the UK workforce that are limiting AI adoption
• measure the impact of AI upskilling on business productivity and outcomes

Who can apply

To apply, you must be a representative of an individual business and the business must: 

• be registered and operate in the UK
• employ between 1 to 249 employees in the UK
• be defined as an SME per the BEIS SME action plan: 2022 to 2025
• have been operating for at least 1 year at the time of application
• operate in the Professional and Business Services sector as defined by the SIC codes in Table 1 (where a business has multiple SIC codes, you are eligible to apply as long as at least one of the SIC codes is on the list)

The application window closes at 11:59 pm on 18 August 2024.

For more information on the government website click here.