RAISE opens a call for SMEs ready to scale with AI

Growth-stage SMEs from Estonia, Latvia, Finland and Sweden are invited to apply for the RAISE (Regional AI Initiative for Scaling Enterprises) programme, designed to help companies turn AI opportunities into practical solutions and measurable business growth.

RAISE supports SMEs through individual mentoring, cross-border matchmaking, workshops and AI pilot implementation. Selected companies will work with business mentors and AI solution providers to define their scaling goals, develop a roadmap and implement an AI solution tailored to their needs.

Who can apply?

The call is open to growth-stage SMEs across all sectors. Applicants should generally be up to five years old (justified exceptions may apply), have an existing market presence and some revenue, and demonstrate a clear ambition to grow and scale.

Companies should have a specific AI adoption need or an idea for an AI-enabled product, service or process improvement, be able to define measurable goals and KPIs, and have a team ready to actively participate in the programme.

Applications will be assessed based on business impact and scalability, AI relevance and technical feasibility, team readiness, and sustainability impact.

Benefits and participation requirements

Selected SMEs will benefit from a matched AI Solution Provider to develop their AI pilot, dedicated cross-border mentoring, and practical workshops covering topics such as value proposition design, market entry, AI in operations and IP protection. Participants will also gain access to an international network of partners and use cases, and the opportunity to showcase their solution to investors and potential partners at the RAISE Demo Day.

Participation requires an active commitment. Companies must take part in agreed mentoring, workshops, matchmaking and Demo Day activities and fulfil project monitoring and reporting requirements, including providing information on their KPIs, scaling roadmap and achieved results.

About RAISE

RAISE is an EU co-funded Interreg Central Baltic project supporting growth-stage SMEs in Estonia, Latvia, Finland and Sweden through practical AI adoption. The project is implemented by Tallinn Science Park Tehnopol Foundation, KIRAHub, Latvian IT Cluster and Linköping Science Park and runs from April 2026 to December 2028.

Application deadline: November 20th, 2026
Apply here: https://the-raise-platform.lovable.app/

About the project: https://centralbaltic.eu/project/raise/

This activity is supported as part of RAISE, an Interreg Central Baltic Programme 2021- 2027 project co-funded by the European Union.