Rose Conway-Walsh (Mayo, Sinn Fein)
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328. To ask the Minister for Enterprise, Trade and Employment the steps his Department he plans to take to increase the number of Irish businesses using big data, the cloud, and AI. [28796/25]

Niamh Smyth (Cavan-Monaghan, Fianna Fail)
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Ensuring that Irish businesses leverage big data, cloud computing, and AI to grow our economy and bolster our competitiveness is a key priority for me. As set out in the National Digital Strategy, Harnessing Digital, published in February 2022, the Government’s target is for 90% of SMEs having at least basic digital intensity and at least 75% take-up of AI, Cloud and Data Analytics by 2030.

The European Commission’s 2024 Digital Decade Report states that 'with 66.1% of SMEs having at least a basic level of digital intensity, Ireland brings a very strong contribution to the EU’s Digital Decade target on digitalisation of SMEs'. And according to statistics provided by the CSO for 2024 AI adoption rose from 8% of enterprises in 2023 to 14.9% in 2024.

Embracing AI and digital technologies is crucial for our continued economic growth and prosperity. One of the biggest opportunities around AI deployment is in bridging the productivity gap in our indigenous SMEs. While Tech companies are rapidly adopting new technologies, much of my Department’s focus is on driving increased usage of AI among small businesses in the non-tech sectors and domestically trading businesses. We continue to help companies to embrace both basic level digital tools for driving efficiencies and productivity and also to invest in more sophisticated tools where appropriate for their business.

My focus this year is to further drive awareness and adoption through our Enterprise Agencies, the Local Enterprise Offices (LEOs) network, and the business representative bodies. To achieve this, the Department’s Grow Digital Portal is a key initiative showcasing digital success stories of how different (non-tech) businesses have embraced digital solutions to increase efficiency, reduce costs and boost their competitiveness.

My Department also provides a wide array of digital supports to assist businesses on their AI and digital adoption journey.

One of the key initiatives is the Grow Digital Voucher, introduced by the LEOs and expanded in September 2024. The Grow Digital Voucher provides up to €5,000 in funding to small businesses with up to 50 employees, enabling them to adopt digital technologies. Eligible expenditure under the voucher includes a broad range of digital tools and services, such as e-commerce and e-invoicing software, cybersecurity solutions, analytics platforms, and AI systems. Website development subscriptions are also covered, supporting businesses in enhancing their online presence.

To access the Grow Digital Voucher, businesses must first participate in the Digital for Business consultancy scheme, also made available through the LEOs. This free consultancy service connects businesses with expert digital consultants who help assess existing digital systems, identify gaps, and develop tailored plans for adopting new or enhanced digital solutions. This preparatory step ensures that businesses are well-positioned to make effective use of the funding available through the Grow Digital voucher. There has been a strong uptake of the Digital for Business consultancy scheme with 293 clients approved in 2024 bringing us up to 361 clients approved as of 30 April 2025. This underscores the demand for foundational digital skills and planning support among small businesses.

And as part of the Digital Europe Programme, the European Commission and EU Member States have established a network of European Digital Innovation Hubs (EDIHs). These Hubs support digital transformation in SMEs and public sector organisations by encouraging the adoption of the latest advances in the three DIGITAL key technologies of Cybersecurity, Artificial Intelligence and High-Performance Computing.

There are four EDIHs in Ireland:

• FactoryxChange (FxC) led by the Irish Manufacturing Research in Mullingar,
• ENTIRE led by Tyndall National Institute in Cork,
• CeADAR, Ireland's Centre for Applied AI in UCD in Dublin,
• DATA2SUSTAIN led by Atlantic Technological University in Sligo.