- What
- Non-dilutive grants and debt from a SAR 2.5B programme; LendTech loans up to SAR 8.5M.
- Who
- Saudi startups at any stage, from concept to scale-up.
- Cost
- No equity — grant
- Status
- Active
In detail
NTDP — National Tech Dev Program is a non-dilutive grant + debt in Saudi Arabia. MCIT's SAR 2.5B national tech program. SAR 360M non-dilutive venture debt for later-stage startups. MVPLab to date: 1,179 startups and 2,392 entrepreneurs backed, SAR 250M+ raised at 2.2x private multiplier, 5,000+ jobs across 10 cities.
- Amount
- SAR 2.5B programme budget (since 2020)
- Venture Debt initiative for Series A and higher — no published size
- LendTech SME lending up to SAR 8.5M (product temporarily suspended at SDB)
- Terms
- No equity
- Eligibility
- All stages — concept to scale-up
- Sectors
- Technology, AI, Digital transformation
- Status
- Active
Closing soon on the map
Cultural Development Fund (CDF)
Grant · Saudi Arabia
Up to SAR 500,000 non-repayable per project, capped at 20 projects total.
No equity — grant
29 Sep 2026closes
Finspire
Accelerator · Saudi Arabia
SAR 100,000 development funding, earmarked rather than paid as cash.
Equity via SAFE, capped at 5%
4 Oct 2026closes
QSTP Incubation
Accelerator · Qatar
In-kind support: Doha workspace and housing for a four-week Sprint, talent and investor access.
Equity — 1.5% deferred SAFE-style stake
1 Nov 2026closes
More grants & prizes in Saudi Arabia
Cultural Development Fund (CDF)
Grant · Saudi Arabia
Up to SAR 500,000 non-repayable per project, capped at 20 projects total.
No equity — grant
29 Sep 2026closes
RDIA — Saudi Innovation Grants
Grant · Saudi Arabia
Innovation grants of up to SAR 4 million per project (Saudi Innovation Grants Program).
No equity — ownership retained
—
Misk Foundation
Grant · Saudi Arabia
Zero-equity grants up to SAR 1M through the Challenge for Change programme.
No equity — grant
—
More programmes that take no equity →
Sources
Primary source · ntdp.gov.sa · LinkedIn · linkedin.com/company/ntdpsa