AI Funding in Nouvelle-Aquitaine: A Guide for SMEs

This guide is written for a specific audience: businesses actually established in Nouvelle-Aquitaine, in south-west France, whether in Bordeaux, Gironde or elsewhere in the region. If your company operates there, you have access to the same national schemes as a business in Paris, plus regional support specific to this territory. None of what follows applies to a business without a genuine presence in France. The point is not to find a single grant that covers everything: it is to combine several mechanisms across the three moments of an AI project (the assessment, training, implementation). Here is the full picture, with the right local contacts.

What national schemes apply in Nouvelle-Aquitaine?

The first thing to check, valid across the whole of France, is what Bpifrance (the French public investment bank) offers. Diag Data IA co-funds an assessment carried out by an accredited expert at 40%, which brings the cost to the business down to roughly €6,000 excl. VAT. That figure is after co-funding, for a diagnostic covering around ten days of work spread over three months. The scheme targets SMEs and mid-sized companies with 10 to 2,000 employees and at least €1 million in turnover, and applies across France, including in Nouvelle-Aquitaine.

The second national lever is OPCO funding for team training. As soon as the training is delivered by a provider certified Qualiopi (France's official training-quality accreditation), your OPCO covers a large share, sometimes all, of the cost, depending on your headcount and sector. It is a fast, often under-used lever, including in this region. Full detail on both schemes is covered in our guide to funding an AI project.

What does the Nouvelle-Aquitaine region offer for SMEs' digital transformation?

The Nouvelle-Aquitaine region supports the digital transformation of its businesses through several schemes: digitalisation vouchers or grants, sector-specific calls for projects, sometimes co-run with local authorities. These mechanisms change regularly: eligibility conditions, amounts and application windows shift from one year to the next, sometimes mid-year.

Two habits keep you from missing out. Check the official Nouvelle-Aquitaine region website and its directory of business support. Then check les-aides.fr, which lists public schemes by territory with regular updates. A digital advisor at Bordeaux Gironde's Chamber of Commerce (CCI) can also give you an up-to-date read on which schemes are open when you put your application together, at no cost.

The national "Osez l'IA" programme is sometimes mentioned in this context: its conditions target specific criteria. Our article on the Osez l'IA programme covers what it actually funds.

How does France Num help identify what's available in your area?

France Num plays a national referencing role: it is the reference directory of digital transformation support, filterable by territory, topic and type of beneficiary. For a business in Nouvelle-Aquitaine, it is the first source to check to see which schemes are open at the time you apply, with fact sheets kept updated by the programme's team.

France Num also lists Activateurs France Num by region. These are providers accredited as digital transformation support partners for small and mid-sized businesses. Working with an Activateur is not compulsory, but it makes it easier to file applications for certain schemes that require one, and points you to providers whose profile has been vetted.

What local ecosystem can support an SME in Nouvelle-Aquitaine?

Beyond funding schemes, three local entry points speed things up:

• Bordeaux Gironde's Chamber of Commerce (CCI): its digital advisors support business owners free of charge to map out available support and point them to the right applications. Often the fastest entry point.
• AEC (Agence de l'Économie Créative) Nouvelle-Aquitaine: supports business transformation with digital programmes specific to the creative and cultural sectors.
• French Tech Bordeaux: a community that connects businesses with AI experts and local companies that have already made the move.

How do you combine these levers on an AI project in Nouvelle-Aquitaine?

The schemes do not overlap: they target distinct parts of the project and follow naturally on from one another.

The golden rule: submit applications before starting. A Diag Data IA project starts by naming the accredited expert on the Bpifrance platform once you have agreement in principle. OPCO funding requests must be filed before training starts. Regional grants often have application windows to respect. Retroactive funding is rarely possible: you need to plan several weeks ahead.

Where should you start if your business is based in Nouvelle-Aquitaine?

The most efficient sequence is still to start with the assessment. It is what shapes the rest of the project and justifies which schemes to pursue. An AI assessment funded through Diag Data IA typically produces 2 to 3 concrete, costed use cases with a clear sequence. Once that work is done, training and implementation find their natural scope and funder, whether that is your OPCO or the regional schemes open at the time.