NZ Government AI Funding Guide (2026): How to Get the $15,000 AI Advisory Pilot Co-Funding

What the money is

Under the national AI strategy, MBIE runs the AI Advisory Pilot, delivered through the Regional Business Partner Network (RBPN): eligible SMEs work with registered experts to identify AI opportunities and implement practical solutions in day-to-day operations, with the government covering up to 50% of the cost, capped at NZD 15,000.

Following strong demand, the pilot has been expanded from 50 to 150 businesses with widened eligibility, and extended to 31 January 2027. The window is real — but capped and first-come.

Who qualifies

Per the official criteria, a business must meet all of the following:

• NZ-registered business: registered and operating in New Zealand.
• Fewer than 500 employees: which covers the vast majority of SMEs.
• Operating for at least 12 months: newly registered companies need a year of history first.
• An RBPN customer: the pilot is open to Regional Business Partner Network customers — registration is free, after which a regional advisor assesses entry.

The application path: four steps

Everything runs through the RBPN; confirm details against the latest official guidance:

• Step 1 · Register with RBPN: sign your business up with the Regional Business Partner Network (15 regional providers nationwide).
• Step 2 · Talk to a Growth Advisor: the advisor assesses your business and AI adoption intent, and whether you enter the pilot.
• Step 3 · Match with a registered provider: work with a pilot-recognised AI expert to shape the implementation plan.
• Step 4 · Execute and co-pay: deliver against the approved plan; the government covers up to half, capped at NZD 15,000.

How to spend it well: an honest take

NZD 15,000 of co-funding is enough to get one real business workflow running — and just as easy to burn with nothing left. The two common wastes: generic training courses (the team still does not know where to start afterwards), and demo builds (impressive on screen, unused three months later).

The sounder play: diagnose first, free — the AIV visibility scan shows where your website stands in search and AI retrieval, and the AIM assessment identifies the one workflow most worth fixing — then apply with a clear direction. Put the funded budget into one verifiable workflow (follow-up, reconciliation and knowledge Q&A all show results in 2–4 weeks), and after 90 days you own a running process, not a stack of slides.

Notes for Chinese-speaking business owners

RBPN registration, advisor conversations and plan documents are all in English. If your team works in Chinese, bring a bilingual delivery partner: state the business clearly in Chinese, and make the application materials and implementation plan solid in English — no compromises on either side.

BEE Sigma (BEEBEE AI’s enterprise services brand), headquartered in Auckland and delivering in English and Chinese, offers two free pre-application steps: the AIV visibility scan and the AIM adoption assessment — answering the most important question first: what exactly should the funding build? Get the direction right, and the subsidy is actually worth something.