Tech Yukon Digital & AI Adoption (TYDA) Program
Tech Yukon has partnered with the Government of Yukon’s Department of Economy, Tourism and Culture to deliver the TYDA grant to small businesses in the Yukon. This grant can help get your business online, give your existing e-commerce presence a boost, or offset the cost for implementing AI to improve or automate your business processes.
Eligible Yukon businesses will receive a micro-grant of up to $2,500 to help with costs related to adopting e-commerce and will be supported with e-commerce advisory. E-commerce advisors will work with businesses to help identify their digital goals, advise on the application process, and answer any questions about the program.
This program is meant for consumer-facing small businesses who want to:
- Start selling products and services online
- Create an online ordering system
- Integrate online bookings or reservations
- Accept online payments
- Add new features or functionality to an existing online store or booking system
Not sure if you’re eligible? Check the criteria below!
The current intake is fully subscribed.
Please email [email protected]
to be added to the waitlist.
Got questions? Email: [email protected]
FIND OUT IF YOU QUALIFY
BUSINESS ELIGIBILITY
To be eligible for micro-grant funding, small businesses must meet all of the following criteria:
- For-profit business (including for-profit social enterprises and co-operatives) in Yukon
- Registered or Incorporated business
- Consumer-facing
- Must be able to be accessed by consumers or provide in-person services to consumers
- At least one employee (other than the business owner) OR have made at least $30,000 in revenue in the past 12 months
- Commit to maintaining a digital adoption strategy for six months after participation in the program
- Commit to participating in follow-up surveys, sharing information with Tech Yukon, and having the name of the business published as a recipient of funding
- Businesses that have previously received the Canada Digital Adoption Program Grant are NOT eligible for this grant
The following types of businesses are ineligible:
- Corporate chains and franchises
- Registered charities and not-for-profit organizations
- Representatives of multi-level marketing companies
- Real estate brokerages and sales agents
- Businesses that have previously received the Canada Digital Adoption Program Grant are NOT eligible for this grant
GRANT EXPENSE ELIGIBILITY
ELIGIBLE
All eligible costs must be directly tied to the sale of goods and services online (i.e. online reservations or ordering function on website), and you will need to clearly outline this in your application.
- Costs related to the implementation or improvement of a digital e-commerce plan (e.g. online reservation/booking tools, online ordering systems, electronic payments)
- Subscription/software costs related to the installation of an e-commerce platform, up to and not in excess of $500
- Digital Marketing Costs (e.g. Social media or Pay-per-click ads) up to and not in excess of $500
- Plan cannot be strictly digital marketing, it needs to be tied to overall e-commerce implementation plan, and not a standalone item
- Hiring a consultant/agency to execute initiatives related to your e-commerce store, digital marketing, data strategy/structuring, or AI implementation
- Development of new e-commerce website
- Upgrading existing e-commerce site for added functionality (i.e., new plugins, or features)
- Redesign or aesthetic improvements of an existing site is not eligible
- E-commerce software including:
- Software to track and manage product inventory, as well as fulfill and ship orders
- Software for product databases
- Software to track sales, market to customers, offer discounts, maintain loyalty programs
- Software to simplify marketing
- AI software subscriptions including:
- LLM Plans
- Tokens for AI models
- AI-enabled process improvement or automation tools
- Use of AI for building new tools/apps/features for the business or vibe coding
- AI Training expenses
INELIGIBLE
Transactions deemed to be non-arm’s length between a successful grant recipient and their chosen service provider are ineligible.
A non-arm’s length transaction is a transaction made between related persons as described in Section 251 of the Income Tax Act, which defines related persons as individuals connected by blood relationship, marriage, or adoption, and any situation involving different degrees of control by these persons or corporations.
- Purchases made prior to grant approval
- Costs of connectivity (Internet service, network infrastructure, mobile data plans, etc.)
- Website search optimization (SEO)
- Hardware
- Back-office solutions (e.g. Accounting, HR/Payroll, IT Service Management, Document Management software, etc.)
- Cybersecurity software or certifications
- Costs related to the shipping of goods purchased through the e-commerce platform
- Office software (e.g. Microsoft Office, iWork, Google Workspace, etc.)
- Renewal of digital services such as domain name, software subscription etc.
- This includes existing e-commerce subscriptions
- Signage and printing
- Logo redesign and rebranding
- Travel Expenses
- Business owner’s salary or current employee salary for executing the project
- Costs of land, building or vehicle purchase
- Costs of intangible assets such a goodwill, whether capitalized or expensed
- Depreciation or amortization expenses
- Interest on invested capital, bonds, or debentures
- Bond discount
- Monthly mortgage, loan and/or rent payments
- Refinancing of an existing debt
- Losses on investments, bad debts, and any other debts
- Fines or penalties
- Costs related to litigation
- Fees for administrators including payments to any member or officer of the Recipient’s Board of Directors
- Opportunity costs
- Hospitality and entertainment costs
- Franchise fees and/or franchise license costs
- Lobbyist fees
- New capital expenditure
- Consulting fees for submission of TYDA application or any costs not related to the acquisition or set up of technology solution
- Costs related to sales that are not consumer facing (such as wholesale software) or a drop shipping site
- Use of AI for image/video generation.
- Basic use of AI i.e. for proofreading, research, or ideation.
FAQS
Accordion Content
What counts as a consumer-facing business?
A consumer-facing business is one that sells products or services directly to end consumers. It may have a brick-and-mortar presence as well as an online presence.
A business that sells to other businesses or engages in wholesale trade may be considered a consumer-facing business if it also sells directly to end consumers. For example, a painting supply store that sells paints to professional painters could be eligible if they open an online store to sell paints directly to consumers. Another example, a farmer selling produce mainly to grocery stores could be eligible for the program if they started to sell directly to consumers through an online platform that enables consumers to order/reserve and prepay for products for pick up at a road side stand.
Businesses that are not considered consumer-facing are those that focus primarily on wholesale trade or sell only to other businesses. Businesses that engage in dropshipping or online reselling are also not considered consumer-facing.
Are sole proprietors or partnerships eligible?
Yes, but you will still need to provide your business registration or business license as proof of registration.
Eligible applicants must be “a registered or incorporated business”. Is it one or the other?
Yes, it can be either one or the other. The key is that the business must be legitimate, operate according to existing rules and regulations, and registered to operate.
What documents do I need to provide to prove that my company is a registered business?
Any one of the following:
- Master business license
- Yukon Corporate Registry document
- Article of incorporation
- GST return from CRA
It is preferred that you provide a government document that confirms it’s a business. If you only provide a GST/HST number, then this number will be verified via the GST/HST registry.
If my business provides goods and services online only, would I still be eligible?
Yes. Consumer-facing businesses are those that provide the majority of their services directly to consumers. Most will have a brick-and-mortar presence where consumers can access their goods and services. Some will also have a virtual ‘front door’ through their online presence which also provides services to consumers.
How many employees do I need in order to qualify for the grant?
You need at least 1 employee, part-time or full-time, that has been working for at least 3 months at your business. Owners and business partners do not count as employees. Freelance or contract are also not considered employees.
If you do not have an employee, then businesses with at least $30,000 in annual revenue in the most recent tax year (2021), will qualify for the grant.
Can the grant be used to pay an employee or contractor to support digital adoption?
The micro-grant can be used to pay a contractor only if the contractor operates an independent business (registered and/or incorporated) that provides digital-adoption services. The grant cannot be used to pay an employee’s salary.
Will the grant be a reimbursement vs upfront disbursement of funds?
It will be a reimbursement. The recipient must provide paid receipts to be reimbursed.
I have previously received CDAP/TYDA funding, can I use this grant towards improving my website?
No, businesses that have previously received the Canada Digital Adoption Program (CDAP) or Tech Yukon Digital Adoption Program (TYDA) Grant are NOT eligible for additional awards.
You may apply for a separately registered business that has not previously received CDAP funding.
What are some example AI implementation projects?
Here are some common business areas where AI can effectively improve automation.
Customer Support
- Website Chatbot trained on company docs
- Email Triage (categorizing, routing, drafting replies)
- Call Summarization + CRM population.
Sales/Marketing
- Lead Qualification/Scoring
- Ad/Social content generation
- Automate SEO optimization
- Personalized dynamic email campaigns/website experience
- Product visual searches
- Product recommendations
Operations
- Inventory/demand Forecasting
- Route Optimization
- Predictive Maintenance using sensor & machine data
- AI Meeting Assistant (Track decisions and action items)
- Workflow Automation (Auto-generate proposals, populate forms, etc.)
- Decision Support System/Dashboards (Predict trends and risks, suggest strategic actions)
HR/Admin
- Candidate Screening/ranking
- Employee Onboarding (Personalized training, explain benefits/perks/policies)
- Internal Knowledge Assistant for answering employee questions, SOP/policy/project doc searches
Finance
- Invoice Processing (Extract invoice data automatically, match against purchase orders, flag anomalies)
- Fraud Detection (Detect suspicious transactions, flag abnormal behavior patterns)
- Contract Review (Identify risky clauses)
The current intake is fully subscribed.
Please email [email protected]
to be added to the waitlist.
Got questions? Email: [email protected]
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