Every entry lists the benefit, eligibility, application route, and source.
Vercel · verified · Checked Oct 20, 2026
AI-native startup; selective cohort application; no partner required but competitive; apply at vercel.com/ai-accelerator; teams building AI-powered web applications on Vercel
The Vercel AI Accelerator is a selective cohort program for AI startups, providing $216,000 in Vercel hosting credits plus access to $8M+ in AI partner credits.
Hugging Face · verified · Checked Oct 2, 2026
No current direct startup entitlement was confirmed. Independently sourced partner offers have their own conditions.
The reviewed Pro page describes a normal paid subscription; no general startup grant was confirmed.
OpenRouter · verified · Checked Oct 14, 2026
Direct apply at openrouter.ai/startup-program; no partner required
OpenRouter for Startups gives qualifying early-stage companies $5000 in universal inference credits — usable across 300+ frontier and open-source AI models with 0% processing fees; through a single unified API.
Groq · verified · Checked Oct 11, 2026
Direct apply at groq.com/groq-for-startups; no partner required
Groq for Startups gives qualifying early-stage AI companies $10000 in free inference compute credits — the world's fastest AI inference platform powered by the Language Processing Unit (LPU) delivering up to 2000 tokens per second.
DigitalOcean · verified · Checked Oct 11, 2026
Funding must not exceed $10M. Requires a company site, matching business email and DigitalOcean team account with valid card. Service agencies and consultancies are excluded; AI-native startups are prioritized.
The current DigitalOcean Startups program offers twelve months of cloud credits and fifteen months of Standard support. GPU credit packages are available to selected applicants.
DeepInfra · verified · Checked Sep 6, 2026
Startup must have raised between $250,000 and $10M and have been founded within the last two years. Award is subject to application.
DeepStart advertises one billion free tokens calculated at DeepSeek V3.1 prices. This is a model-price-based allowance, not a guarantee of a billion tokens on every model.
Modal · verified · Checked Oct 2, 2026
New customers at Seed or Series A with qualifying partner VC funding or more than $1M from other venture investors. Later-stage scaling teams have a separate partner-VC route.
Modal offers selected startups service credits and technical support. The current public page does not advertise a universal $25,000 award or common validity period. Review the approved allocation and service scope before using paid compute.
Together · verified · Checked Oct 11, 2026
Apply with company, funding and product information. Together selects participants and determines the applicable tier; advertised maxima do not guarantee an award.
Together’s Startup Accelerator scales credits with funding: $15,000 for teams with up to $5M raised, $30,000 for $5M–$10M and $50,000 above $10M. The program includes three, six or ten hours of engineering support. Reserved GPU clusters are excluded; a universal credit expiration is not published.
Together · verified · Checked Oct 11, 2026
No current entitlement is established for this historical tier.
This older direct program tier is retained for existing links. Use the current reviewed official program on this product page; its eligibility and allocation replace this older listing.
Vercel · verified · Checked Oct 21, 2026
Apply through the startup team's official form. Award size, qualification and term depend on Vercel review; the public page does not publish universal thresholds.
Vercel's program offers up to $30,000 in Flexible Commitment Amount with Enterprise-tier access and startup support.
Google Cloud · verified · Checked Oct 11, 2026
Scale requires eligible institutional/Web3 funding from pre-seed through Series A, incorporation within five years, and no more than $5,000 in previous credits. Start requires an eligible pre-funded product company founded within 24 months and no credits beyond the free trial.
Standard Scale covers year-one usage up to $100,000 and 20% of year-two spend up to another $100,000. AI-first awards raise year-one coverage to $250,000. The separate pre-funded Start tier offers $2,000 for twelve months. Third-party models are excluded.
RunPod · verified · Checked Oct 11, 2026
Earlier-stage startups with working AI products and near-term GPU needs, typically pre-Series A. Venture backing is strongly preferred and acceptance is selective. Primarily for new customers; existing customers are reviewed case by case.
Get $1,000 in free credits for Pods, Serverless, Clusters, public endpoints, or storage, with full platform access and self-serve onboarding.
RunPod · verified · Checked Oct 9, 2026
Venture-backed AI startups with production workloads and immediate GPU needs, typically Seed to Series B+. Best fit: teams spending or ready to spend $5,000–$25,000+ per month on GPU infrastructure. RunPod approval is required.
Commit $50,000 upfront and receive a one-time $25,000 credit bonus, for $75,000 total credits under a 12-month agreement. Includes a dedicated onboarding call.
Alibabacloud · verified · Checked Oct 22, 2026
Early-stage startups globally; assessed by stage and use case
Alibaba Cloud gives qualifying early-stage startups up to $50000 in cloud credits; technical support; co-marketing opportunities; and access to Alibaba global investor and partner networks.
Together · verified · Checked Oct 11, 2026
No current entitlement is established for this historical tier.
This older direct program tier is retained for existing links. Use the current reviewed official program on this product page; its eligibility and allocation replace this older listing.
NVIDIA · verified · Checked Oct 11, 2026
Incorporated technology company less than ten years old, a working website and at least one developer. Venture funding is not required; NVIDIA reviews the application.
NVIDIA Inception has no application fee or equity requirement. Members can access training, technical resources, preferred hardware pricing and selected partner benefits. Cloud credits depend on the partner; there is no guaranteed universal credit balance.
Cerebras · verified · Checked Oct 11, 2026
Direct apply at cerebras.ai/startups; no partner required
Cerebras for Startups gives qualifying AI-focused early-stage companies up to $22500 in Cerebras compute credits; priority access to new AI models; and technical and marketing support — the fastest AI inference platform powered by the Wafer Scale Engine.
Amazon Web Services (AWS) · verified · Checked Oct 2, 2026
Requires a startup website/profile, incorporation within ten years, a paid-tier AWS account and eligibility based on prior awards. Portfolio applicants must be pre-Series B and provide an Activate Provider Org ID.
Self-funded founders start with $1,000 and selected participants may receive up to $5,000. The Portfolio tier offers up to $200,000. Invitation-only AI awards are separate.
Databricks · verified · Checked Oct 11, 2026
Higher-credit route: at least $1M in venture funding or a recognized accelerator. Self-funded teams with less than $1M raised can apply for Neon’s smaller up-to-$1,000 route. Existing customers may apply, subject to program review.
The current joint startup program provides eligible teams with a shared credit package across Databricks and Neon for twelve months. The $200,000 maximum is a combined allowance, not two independent awards. Technical help and ecosystem introductions are separate program benefits.
Render · verified · Checked Oct 16, 2026
No current entitlement is established for this historical tier.
This older direct program tier is retained for existing links. Use the current reviewed official program on this product page; its eligibility and allocation replace this older listing.
Roboflow · verified · Checked Oct 11, 2026
Early-stage startups not backed by YC or Tier 1 VC; new Roboflow customers
Roboflow for Startups gives qualifying early-stage companies free access to the Roboflow computer vision platform - the end-to-end tool for building; training; and deploying vision AI models with no infrastructure overhead.
Databricks · verified · Checked Oct 11, 2026
No current entitlement is established for this historical tier.
This older direct program tier is retained for existing links. Use the current reviewed official program on this product page; its eligibility and allocation replace this older listing.
Roboflow · verified · Checked Oct 11, 2026
YC companies or startups backed by a Tier 1 VC; new Roboflow customers
Roboflow for Startups gives qualifying early-stage companies free access to the Roboflow computer vision platform - the end-to-end tool for building; training; and deploying vision AI models with no infrastructure overhead.
Nebius · verified · Checked Oct 13, 2026
Early-stage startups; new Nebius customers; under $5M raised
Nebius for Startups gives AI-focused early-stage companies $5,000 in immediate GPU credits plus up to $100,000 in discounted compute — enterprise-grade H100 infrastructure without hyperscaler friction or quota roadblocks.