MBIE AI Advisory Pilot: what it pays for and how to apply

What the pilot pays for

It pays up to half of eligible costs. Your business pays at least the other half. There are two stages.

The first is an AI roadmap, with funding of up to $2,500. The second is implementation support, with funding of up to $12,500. Those are caps on the funding, not on the job. As an illustration only, a roadmap with $5,000 of eligible costs could be funded up to $2,500, and you would pay the remaining $2,500.

The pilot is run through the Regional Business Partner Network. Funding is limited and competitive. The official page does not say how many places are left, so I cannot tell you either. It is open until 30 June 2027.

What it does not pay for

The official page lists several exclusions. These are the ones that catch owners out:

• Developing AI products to sell.
• General software development.
• Training that is not tied to putting AI into your business.
• Work done before approval.
• Any cost outside the scope that gets agreed.

Please do not start paid work early. If you hire someone before you have approval, that spend is not covered. Wait for a yes first, even if it feels slow.

Who can apply

You need a New Zealand Business Number. Māori trusts and incorporations with an NZBN are included. You need fewer than 50 full-time equivalent staff. The pilot is aimed at established businesses that are ready to look at practical uses of AI, with the goal of getting more done in the same hours.

That is the published list. Whether your business fits, and whether your idea is in scope, is confirmed by the growth advisor you speak to. I do not decide it and I cannot predict it.

How to apply

Register with the Regional Business Partner Network and talk to a growth advisor. Funding decisions are made through the Regional Business Partner Network, not by Kove. The official page puts the effort for applying at four to 12 hours, so set aside real time and do not leave it to a lunch break.

Start here: Apply through the Regional Business Partner Network.

Questions to take to the growth advisor

• Does my business meet the NZBN and staff-number conditions as they stand today?
• Is the idea I have in mind in scope, or does it count as general software development?
• Which costs are eligible, and which are not?
• When does approval happen, and what counts as starting work?
• What happens if my roadmap suggests something the implementation stage will not cover?
• How many hours should I expect the application to take, and what do you need from me?
• Do I need to choose a provider myself, or is that part of the process? (I do not know the answer, so ask.)

A hypothetical roadmap for a 12-person trades firm

This is an example I made up to show what a sensible roadmap looks like. It is not a real client and not a promise of what any roadmap will say. The steps come from general practice, not from how the pilot's providers run their roadmaps.

Picture a 12-person electrical firm. It has an office manager, three leading hands and eight installers. Quotes are typed up in Word, job notes live in text messages, and customer emails pile up on Monday mornings.

A reasonable roadmap would cover five things.

1. List where the hours go. Two weeks of notes from the office manager and each leading hand. Stop point: if no task eats more than an hour or two a week, AI is not your problem yet. Stop here and keep your money.
2. Pick two or three jobs. For example, a first draft of quotes from job notes, and a drafted reply to routine customer emails. Go point: each job has a person who checks the output before it goes out.
3. Check the data. What would be pasted in, which plan keeps it out of model training, and what each tool can see in your files. Stop point: if the data cannot be kept safe on a plan you can afford, drop that job.
4. Write the rules. One page for staff on what can and cannot go into an AI tool. The free AI policy template is a plain resource you can edit.
5. Cost the build. A fixed scope, a timeline and a named person who will check results. Go point: the saving is clearly bigger than the cost over the first year. Stop point: it is not.

If you reach step 5 and the answer is yes, you have a document you own. You can take it to implementation under the pilot, or to anyone else.

Where Kove fits

Kove is not an approved provider under the pilot. I am not a Regional Business Partner provider, and I cannot apply for funding, approve it or tell you whether you will get it.

What I do is separate, privately paid work. I set up AI safely for owner-run firms under 20 staff: the right licence, rules for client data, staff trained on their own email and documents, and small tools built inside software the firm already uses. I quote and invoice that work to you directly. It is not arranged through the pilot. I work with owner-run firms under 20 staff, so if you are bigger than that, the pilot may still suit you but I am probably not the right fit.

Checklist for a privately paid implementation after the roadmap

• The roadmap is finished, and you hold a copy.
• Each job has a named person who checks the output before anything goes to a customer.
• The data rules are written down and your staff have read them.
• The scope is fixed in writing, with a price agreed before work starts.
• You know which accounts the tools run under and that you own them.
• There is a short handover: documentation and a recorded walkthrough.
• You have set a date, about three months out, to check whether the saving showed up.

If you are on Microsoft 365, what Copilot can see in your files and whether it is worth it for a small firm are worth reading first. My AI consultant page and the AI section of services cover what I do in more detail.

Kove is not an approved provider or Regional Business Partner provider and cannot apply for or approve funding. My work is quoted and invoiced to you directly, outside the pilot, for firms under 20 staff.

Talk about a privately paid set-up

Questions people ask

Who can apply for the AI Advisory Pilot?

NZ businesses with an NZBN and fewer than 50 full-time equivalent staff. Māori trusts and incorporations with an NZBN are included. The growth advisor confirms eligibility, so talk to one before you assume either way.

How much does the AI Advisory Pilot pay?

Up to half of eligible costs. For a roadmap that is up to $2,500 of funding, and for implementation support it is up to $12,500. Your business pays at least half in both cases.

Can I use the AI Advisory Pilot for Copilot?

The official page does not mention Copilot or any named tool. What it describes is a roadmap and then putting practical AI uses in place. Whether a Copilot set-up counts depends on the scope agreed with your growth advisor, so ask them directly.

Can I use it to build custom software?

General software development is excluded, and so is developing AI products to sell. If your idea looks like building software, ask the advisor how it would be treated before you plan around it.

Can I start work before I am approved?

No. Work done before approval is not covered. Wait for approval, then start.

How long does it take to apply?

The official page says four to 12 hours of effort. Funding is competitive, so give the application proper time.

Is Kove an approved provider, and can Kove apply for the grant for me?

No to both. Kove is not an approved provider under the pilot and cannot apply for or decide funding. Funding decisions are made through the Regional Business Partner Network. My work is quoted and invoiced to you directly, outside the pilot.

Sources and last check: Figures checked on 9 Nov 2026 against business.govt.nz, AI Advisory Pilot. The official page was last edited on 20 Aug 2026. This page is my own summary and general information, not advice on your application. Rules can change, so check the official page before you act.