Financial incentives for startups and spin-offs to develop AI, blockchain and robotics solutions

Who it is for

Call No. 02-136-K “Financial incentives for startups and spin-offs to develop AI, blockchain technology and robotic process automation products and solutions” is aimed at young technology companies registered in the Capital region (Vilnius region) — startups and spin-offs developing artificial intelligence, blockchain or robotic process automation products and solutions. The purpose of the funding is to accelerate the development and maturation of such products through a 12-month project.

The call is funded by the Recovery and Resilience Facility under the “New Generation Lithuania” (Naujos kartos Lietuva) plan (progress measure No. 05-001-01-05-05 “Encouraging companies to digitise”) and is administered by the Central Project Management Agency (CPVA). Note that the list of supported technologies covers artificial intelligence, blockchain technologies and robotic process automation — quantum technologies are not within the approved scope of this call.

Funding terms

The total call amount is EUR 3,000,000. The entire budget is allocated to the Capital region (Vilnius region); no funds are earmarked in this call for companies in the Central and Western Lithuania region.

• Funding per project — from EUR 40,000 to EUR 100,000.
• Funding intensity — up to 90% of eligible costs; the remainder, at least 10%, is covered by the applicant from its own funds.
• Project implementation period — 12 months. Unlike the 2023 call No. 02-018-K, in which projects were divided into 6–12-month stages, this call has no stage structure — a single 12-month project is implemented.

Applicant requirements

Under the terms published on the official call page, the applicant must meet all of the following requirements:

• be a startup or spin-off with micro, small or medium-sized enterprise (SME) status;
• at the time of submitting the project implementation plan (PIP), be “registered no earlier than 5 years ago” and have been operating for at least 2 years;
• have annual sales revenue of at least EUR 20,000 in the last financial year before PIP submission — assessed against the data in the approved 2025 set of financial statements;
• be registered in the Capital region (Vilnius region) and not have re-registered from the Central and Western Lithuania region to the Capital region since 1 May 2026;
• not have received funding under the earlier CPVA call No. 02-018-K (2023) — such applicants are not eligible for funding in this call.

The following declarations and justifications are submitted together with the PIP: a “do no significant harm” declaration, a declaration on trade commitments (related to Russia and Belarus), a small and medium-sized business entity status declaration, a “single undertaking” declaration, a budget justification, a justification of funding sources and financial statements. An additional condition concerning revenue originating from information and communication technology activities or from own manufactured products is worded inconsistently across sources, so its exact wording should be verified in the call description.

Eligible costs

• Salaries of the employees implementing the project and the related employer contributions; annual leave accruals — up to 20.02% of salary costs.
• Rental of equipment, software and licences — in proportion to their use in project activities.
• Purchase of external (consulting and equivalent) services — no more than 15% of all eligible project costs.

The full list of eligible and ineligible costs, and the procedures for justifying and paying them, are set out in the call description published on esinvesticijos.lt.

Deadlines and status

As of 11 July 2026, the call is open. Project implementation plans are accepted from 9 June 2026, 08:00, to 31 July 2026, 15:45 — less than three weeks remain until the deadline. PIPs are submitted electronically via the 2021–2027 Data Exchange Site (DMS, dms.investis.lt), signed with a qualified electronic signature. The contact person at CPVA is Senior Project Manager Jūratė Gamulienė (j.gamuliene@cpva.lt).

How to prepare

1. Check your formal eligibility: the company's registration date (no earlier than 5 years ago), length of operation (at least 2 years), 2025 sales revenue (at least EUR 20,000) and registration in the Capital region (Vilnius region). 2. Make sure the approved 2025 set of financial statements has been filed with the Centre of Registers (Registrų centras) — the revenue criterion is assessed against it specifically. 3. Prepare the SME status and “single undertaking” declarations: assess the group of related companies and the de minimis aid received over the last three years. 4. Clearly define the product being developed: which technology (artificial intelligence, blockchain or robotic process automation), its current maturity level and the result you will achieve within 12 months. 5. Draw up a project budget with justification: salary calculations, equipment and licence rental rates, and an external-services share not exceeding 15%. 6. Plan your own contribution — at least 10% of eligible costs — and be ready to justify its sources. 7. Set up access to DMS (dms.investis.lt) in advance and check that your qualified electronic signature works. 8. Read the call description and its annexes on the esinvesticijos.lt website carefully — they contain the exact wording of the terms, which takes precedence over any summaries.