If you run a business in India and you’ve heard “the government is funding AI,” it pays to know exactly what that means — because the honest answer is more specific than the headlines suggest. This page maps what AI funding and government support actually exists in 2026, what you can realistically access, and what simply isn’t on offer. (dgm implements osFoundry, a separate company’s platform — dgm is an independent integration partner, not osFoundry.)
The honest headline: no “buy-AI” grant
There is no general central scheme that pays an ordinary business to buy or adopt AI software. India’s public money for AI is aimed at four things: startups, researchers, compute access, and application projects sourced from ministries and state departments. An SME purchasing an AI subscription or hiring an integration partner does not receive a government subsidy for that purchase. Anyone telling you otherwise is overselling.
What does exist is a substantial ecosystem — worth understanding, because some of it is genuinely accessible if you fit the eligibility.
The IndiaAI Mission — the flagship
The IndiaAI Mission was approved by the Union Cabinet in March 2024 with an outlay of ₹10,371.92 crore over five years (Press Information Bureau). It runs across seven pillars: compute capacity, an innovation centre for indigenous foundation models, the AIKosh datasets platform, application development, startup financing, FutureSkills (talent), and Safe & Trusted AI.
For most builders, the most directly accessible benefit is subsidised GPU compute — the mission has been onboarding tens of thousands of GPUs and offering them to startups, researchers and developers well below market rates (see Subsidised GPU compute via IndiaAI for the current access route; GPU counts and per-hour rates change frequently, so confirm on indiaai.gov.in at the time you apply).
Startup India / DPIIT — if you’re an eligible startup
If your company is a recognised startup, DPIIT recognition under Startup India unlocks real benefits: a three-year income-tax holiday (Section 80-IAC, subject to Inter-Ministerial Board approval), angel-tax exemption, and access to the ₹10,000-crore Fund of Funds for Startups (Startup India). See Startup India & DPIIT benefits for AI startups. A 2025-approved Deep Tech Fund of Funds also channels capital into AI and other deep-tech ventures (India Manufacturing Review).
These are routes for the company to raise capital or save tax — not subsidies for an enterprise buying AI tools.
MSME and state support
For smaller firms, MSME RAMP (a World Bank-supported scheme running to FY2026-27) supports market access, finance and technology adoption broadly — including digital tools, e-commerce and ONDC onboarding (MSME RAMP). It is not an earmarked AI-software grant, but it is the right place to look for digitalisation support. Several states run their own AI missions and incentives (Karnataka, Telangana, Tamil Nadu, Gujarat, Maharashtra and others); see State AI policies in India — and always confirm the current version, as state policies are revised often.
The R&D tax reality
A common misconception is that AI work earns an enhanced tax break. It doesn’t. Section 35 now allows a 100% deduction for qualifying scientific research, and only where the R&D unit is DSIR-approved — the earlier weighted deduction (150%/200%) was phased out (ClearTax). There is no extra deduction simply for implementing AI. The full picture is in R&D tax deduction for AI in India.
How dgm helps
dgm does not administer government funding, and it won’t promise you a grant that doesn’t exist. What it does is scope an AI project realistically — so that, where you genuinely are an eligible startup or researcher, the work lines up with what programmes like IndiaAI actually support, and where you’re an enterprise simply adopting AI, you go in with clear eyes on cost. dgm’s own model is transparent: a $399 assessment and roadmap, then $3,999/month implementation, with no per-seat fees (INR equivalents are approximate and depend on the exchange rate; 18% GST applies for domestic clients). If you’d rather explore the platform yourself first, go straight to osFoundry; if you want a grounded plan for AI in your business, that’s where dgm comes in.
This page is general information, not legal, tax, or financial advice. Programme terms and amounts change — confirm current details with the relevant official source before acting.