Bank of Ireland and Google Make 10,000 Fully Funded AI Certificates Available to Irish Small Businesses
Bank of Ireland and Google Make 10,000 Fully Funded AI Certificates Available to Irish Small Businesses #
Bank of Ireland and Google are making up to 10,000 free places in the Google AI Professional Certificate available to the bank’s small and medium-sized enterprise customers through Google’s Grow with Google programme.
Bank of Ireland has set up an SME AI Academy on its ThinkBusiness.ie platform to support the initiative. The site hosts scholarship applications alongside practical guides and case studies from businesses already using AI tools.
Derek McDermott, director of Everyday Lending at Bank of Ireland, said the Academy was built to equip businesses with the skills and knowledge they need to thrive with AI. He said the bank looked forward to delivering that support across Ireland over the coming months.
Vanessa Hartley, head of Google Ireland, said small and medium-sized businesses are fundamental to Ireland’s economy, creating jobs, driving innovation and strengthening communities across the country. She noted Google had been supporting Irish SMEs with digital skills for more than 20 years, and described the scholarship programme as an effort to make AI training more accessible and help businesses boost productivity and unlock growth opportunities.
The programme comes as the EU AI Act takes effect for businesses of all sizes. Key compliance obligations came into force on 2 August, putting pressure on SMEs to understand their obligations around AI deployment. The Academy includes compliance guidance alongside the skills training.
For Bank of Ireland, which counts tens of thousands of small businesses among its customers, the programme adds AI training to its existing business services. The SME AI Academy is live on ThinkBusiness.ie and scholarship applications are open now.
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