AI Consulting Kit: how to use government grants for local AI

Artificial intelligence is no longer a luxury for large corporations. Today an SME in Bilbao, Vitoria, or Donostia can have its own customer service assistant, its invoice extraction system, or its document analysis engine running on its own server, with open-source software and without depending on the big American clouds.

The problem is not the technology. The problem is knowing where to start.

That is where the AI Consulting Kit comes in, a Spanish government grant line that lets SMEs hire specialised advisory services for digital transformation and artificial intelligence. Used well, it is not just a voucher: it is a way to finance the design of a local AI strategy that saves money for years.

What is the AI Consulting Kit?

The Consulting Kit is a grant programme managed by Red.es within the Recovery, Transformation and Resilience Plan, financed with European NextGenerationEU funds. Its goal is for Spanish SMEs to hire digital consultancy and advisory services without bearing the full cost.

Unlike the Digital Kit, which is oriented towards acquiring specific technological solutions, the Consulting Kit covers the preparatory work: diagnosis, roadmap definition, team training, project planning, and implementation support. In other words, it pays for the part that is hardest to do well: thinking.

Within the programme there are lines directly related to artificial intelligence: AI advisory, advanced data analysis, process optimisation with AI, digital sales with AI, or business strategy with AI. A company can use the voucher to hire a specialised consultant or agency such as Neurosint and design its local AI project before investing in hardware or software.

Who can apply

The Consulting Kit is aimed at companies meeting these conditions:

• Be an SME with between 10 and fewer than 250 employees.
• Have its tax domicile in Spain.
• Be up to date with tax and Social Security obligations.
• Not be considered a company in crisis or in breach of EU de minimis aid rules.
• Not have previously received the same aid.

The amount varies by size:

Each service contracted individually has a €6,000 limit, but several services can be contracted up to the total voucher. The aid covers 100% of the advisory cost, with no company co-payment, except for VAT.

Important note: calls are published by editions and deadlines change. If the current call is closed, it is worth checking the Red.es or Acelera Pyme electronic offices, as new rounds and redistributions of remaining funds usually appear.

What it can be used for

The voucher does not buy a server or a licence. It pays for hours of work from a team that knows what it is doing. That is precisely what an SME needs when it wants to set up local AI without wasting money. These are the most useful applications:

Digital and AI maturity audit

Before buying anything you need to know what you have. An audit reviews current systems, available data, repetitive processes, security, and team capacity. The result is an opportunity map: where local AI can add real value and where it is not worth it.

Roadmap planning

AI is not implemented all at once. A roadmap defines priority use cases, necessary infrastructure, suitable AI model, budget, risks, and schedule. With the Consulting Kit, a company can finance this plan without diverting resources from day-to-day operations.

Team training

Local AI only works if there is someone inside who understands it. The voucher can cover training so that operations, IT, or business managers know how to maintain flows, interpret results, and decide when to scale.

Local AI implementation design

This is where it connects with what we do at Neurosint. The advisory service can design the architecture of a local AI solution: which server or GPU is needed, which open-source models to use, how to integrate them with n8n, ERP, or CRM, how to guarantee data privacy, and what the return on investment will be.

The subsequent technical execution can be financed through other routes, such as the Digital Kit for acquiring solutions, or with the company's own investment. But the Consulting Kit covers the strategic part, the one that prevents expensive mistakes.

How it fits with open-source and local AI

The great advantage of combining the Consulting Kit with open-source AI is that public money is used to think, not to rent. Instead of spending the voucher on lifetime cloud subscriptions, the company pays for a consultancy project that allows it to build its own infrastructure.

This changes the project economics:

• No usage cost. A model such as Llama, Mistral, or Qwen runs locally. There are no API tokens or monthly bills that grow with volume.
• Data sovereignty. Documents, conversations, and customer data do not leave the company network. Important for sectors with confidentiality obligations.
• Controlled scalability. Once the server is amortised, each new use case mainly costs configuration time, not licences.
• No vendor dependence. The software is open source. The company can change consultant, improve the model, or migrate without getting trapped.

The Consulting Kit, used wisely, can be the turning point: the grant that allows an SME to move from "being interested in AI" to "having AI running in its office".

Application process

The procedure is done through the Red.es electronic office, linked to the Cl@ve identification system. The general steps are:

1. Check the active call. Review on Acelera Pyme or the Red.es office whether the deadline is open and which segments are available.
2. Prepare documentation. Usually a certificate of being up to date with tax and Social Security obligations, a responsible declaration, representative details, and documentation accrediting company size are required.
3. Submit the application. Through the electronic office, indicating the segment and the advisory services to be contracted.
4. Resolution and voucher allocation. If granted, the company receives a voucher that can be redeemed with accredited entities for service provision.
5. Agreement signature and execution. The service provision agreement is signed with the chosen consultancy and the project is developed.

The administrative process requires patience and order. Many companies leave it until the last minute and miss deadlines. The usual recommendation is to have documentation ready before the call opens and to work with a consultancy that already knows the programme.

Real-world examples in SMEs

An accounting firm can use the Consulting Kit to design an automatic client document classification system with local AI, reducing filing time by 60%.

An industrial company in Bizkaia can finance the analysis of production data to detect failures before they occur, using open-source models installed on its own server.

A real estate agency can use the voucher to train its team and design an assistant that answers frequently asked questions about properties, without sending client data to external servers.

An online shop can plan the automation of product descriptions, customer support ticket classification, and returns analysis, all running on its own infrastructure.

The common denominator is that the Consulting Kit does not pay for magic. It pays for the plan that makes the magic possible and profitable.

Common mistakes

Confusing the Consulting Kit with the Digital Kit

The Digital Kit buys solutions: software, hardware, cloud services. The Consulting Kit pays for advisory services. They are complementary, but not interchangeable. If you need a physical server, that falls under the Digital Kit or your own investment.

Applying for the voucher without knowing what you want to achieve

A company that applies for the Consulting Kit without a clear idea of the problem to solve usually ends up with a nice report that is never executed. The first step is to define the business objective: save time, reduce errors, improve customer service, analyse data.

Choosing any accredited consultancy

Not all accredited consultancies understand local and open-source AI. It is important to choose one with real experience in local models, integration with n8n, data privacy, and SME support.

Forgetting VAT and deadlines

The aid covers the service cost, but normally the company must pay VAT. It is also necessary to meet the deadlines for signing the service provision agreement; otherwise, the voucher can be lost.

Not planning the subsequent execution

The Consulting Kit ends when the advisory project finishes. If no budget or route has been prepared to execute the recommendations, the study ends up in a drawer. Best practice is to commission both the advisory and the execution from the same team or from an agency that can do both.

Conclusion: from grant to real AI

The AI Consulting Kit is a real opportunity for Spanish SMEs. But its value is not in the voucher itself, but in what it enables them to build: a local, sustainable, vendor-independent AI strategy with control over data.

Used correctly, it finances the most critical phase of any artificial intelligence project: the moment when someone sits down with the company, looks at its processes, chooses the right models, and designs a plan that can be executed.

If your SME has between 10 and 250 employees and you want to explore how local and open-source AI can change your operations without chaining you to cloud subscriptions, at Neurosint we can help. We know the Consulting Kit, we work with local models, n8n, and own infrastructure, and we design projects aimed at SMEs in and around Bilbao and the Basque Country.

Let's talk and see whether your company fits the programme and what you could start building with public support.