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Cover your AI bill with free credits

The model and infrastructure bill is the fastest-growing line item for any AI builder. Before you pay it, claim the credits built to cover it. The non-obvious lever: the big cloud platforms redeem for the major models, so an AWS Activate credit pays for Claude on Amazon Bedrock and Azure credits cover OpenAI. Most need only a working product and a company-domain email, not a funding round. Bursary matches the ones you qualify for and drafts each application.

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Start here · fastest to claim

No company needed, rolling deadlines, low effort — the quickest wins on this list.

Microsoft for Startups Founders Hub
Up to $150,000 Azure credits + AI model access
Render Startup Program
$10,000 in credits for 1 year
AWS Activate Founders
up to $5,000
14 programs · updated 2026-07-12
Google for Startups Cloud Program
Start $2K → up to $250K/yr (AI-first)
Two tracks: self-serve Start ($2K credits; needs an incorporated entity + working site) and the AI-first program — up to $250K Google Cloud credits year 1 (+~$100K year 2) for startups whose core product uses Gemini/Google Cloud AI, raised Pre-seed/Seed within 5 years or Series A within 12 months. Third-party models billed separately. Verified 2026-06-26.
Needs companyNeeds website
Stripe Atlas (perks bundle)
~$220K partner perks
$500 to incorporate a DE C-corp -> unlocks Anthropic $500, AWS $5K, Azure $5K, etc.
No company needed$500 to start
Microsoft for Startups Founders Hub
Up to $150,000 Azure credits + AI model access
Self-serve "Get started" application, no investor or partner referral needed. Up to $150K in Azure credits unlocked in stages, plus access to Azure OpenAI and other AI models and dev tools (verified 2026-06-26). Build a software product and have not exhausted the benefit before; no external funding required and you can start pre-incorporation, though higher tiers verify your startup.
No company needed
DigitalOcean Hatch
up to $100,000 credits over 12 months
Raised $10M or less; needs a company website with a matching corporate email. Credits issued monthly, no rollover.
Needs companyNeeds website
Modal Startup Program
up to $25,000 GPU credits
Pre-seed to Series A; use a company-domain email and a real website. Personal Gmail / thin sites are common rejections.
Needs companyNeeds website
Cloudflare for Startups
$10,000 credits (up to $250K partner-gated)
Self-serve $10K tier for bootstrapped/under-$1M startups under 10 years old; needs a public website + active social/GitHub. Approval ~48h.
Needs companyNeeds website
Render Startup Program
$10,000 in credits for 1 year
Base tier (under $1M funding) is self-serve; the $25K+ tiers need an accelerator/VC referral.
No company neededNeeds website
AWS Activate Founders
up to $5,000
Redeemable for Claude on Bedrock. Needs a custom-domain email (Gmail auto-rejects).
No company neededNeeds website
NVIDIA Inception
Free cloud credits + GPU discounts (no equity)
Free, no fees or equity; incorporated company under 10 years old with at least one developer + a working website (revenue not required). Free NVIDIA + partner cloud credits, preferred GPU/software pricing, DLI training, and investor intros via Inception Capital Connect. Excludes consultancies, crypto, cloud resellers and public companies. Verified 2026-06-26.
Needs companyNeeds website
Fireworks for Startups
Up to $5,000 credits + higher rate limits
Rolling program for early-stage AI-native startups: serverless inference build credits + higher rate limits + access to applied-AI engineers. Credit size is set on acceptance; some credits are distributed via Google Cloud for Startups. Use a company-domain email.
No company neededNeeds website
RunPod Startup
$1,000 GPU credits
Explicitly welcomes bootstrapped/pre-funding. For self-hosted models.
No company needed
Oracle Cloud Free Tier
$300 credits + Always Free services
Fully self-serve: $300 for 30 days plus an Always Free tier (4 ARM CPUs / 24GB) that never expires. No entity needed.
No company needed
GitHub Student Developer Pack
$200+ in credits + free pro dev tools
Free for verified students at accredited schools; sign up with your school email. Bundles a $200 DigitalOcean credit, $100 Azure credit, MongoDB Atlas $50, free JetBrains IDEs, GitHub Pro and 100+ partner offers. Renews while you stay enrolled, no entity needed.
No company needed
Microsoft Azure for Students
$100 Azure credit, no credit card
$100 in Azure credit with no credit card required, plus free access to 25+ services. For full-time students 18+ at an accredited degree-granting institution; verify with your school email. Renews $100 each year you stay enrolled.
No company needed
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Frequently asked questions

Who qualifies for cover your ai bill?

The model and infrastructure bill is the fastest-growing line item for any AI builder. Before you pay it, claim the credits built to cover it. The non-obvious lever: the big cloud platforms redeem for the major models, so an AWS Activate credit pays for Claude on Amazon Bedrock and Azure credits cover OpenAI. Most need only a working product and a company-domain email, not a funding round. Bursary matches the ones you qualify for and drafts each application.

How do I get credits to cover Claude or OpenAI costs?

The cloud marketplaces are the lever. AWS Activate credits redeem for Claude on Amazon Bedrock, and Azure credits cover OpenAI models, so a cloud credit effectively pays your LLM bill. Google Cloud, Oracle and others add to the stack. Bursary tracks which you qualify for and what it takes to activate each.

How much funding is available?

Programs on this list go up to $250,000. Bursary ranks them by what you actually qualify for.

How many programs are on this list?

14 verified programs, re-checked continuously.

Is it free to apply?

Most are free to apply. Bursary reads the fine print and flags any program that charges a fee before you start.

Do I need a registered company?

Not for all of them. Bursary matches programs to your situation and tells you which require a registered entity and which accept individuals.

Browse more: Startup credits · Grants for founders · Grants for creators · Small business grants · Non-dilutive funding · Hackathons & prizes · Student grants · AI startup funding · Free AI credits · Grants for women · Startup accelerators · No LLC needed · Minority founder grants