AI startups get a boost: Nebius and NVIDIA join forces to offer $150K in cloud credits and early Blackwell access

Just three months after securing $700 million from backers like NVIDIA and Accel, Nebius is deepening its relationship with the chip giant to support early-stage startups building AI-first products and services.

Nebius AI Cloud is now working closely with NVIDIA’s Inception program, a global initiative that includes over 22,000 AI startups. The focus: helping founders move faster and cut down the steep costs that often come with training and scaling AI models.

At the center of this collaboration is Nebius’ “AI Lift” program, announced at NVIDIA’s GTC 2025 event. Startups in the Inception program can now get up to $150,000 in Nebius cloud credits and $10,000 specifically for inference-related workloads. There’s also early access to NVIDIA’s new Blackwell platform running on Nebius infrastructure.

Mona Li, Director of Startup Ecosystem at Nebius, said the goal is simple:

“By working together with NVIDIA Inception, Nebius can offer AI startups the tools, expertise, and resources they need to scale their innovations faster and more effectively than ever.”

Li added, “Our aim is to drive the next wave of AI breakthroughs by bringing down technical barriers and fostering collaboration. We provide access to state-of-the-art AI infrastructure accelerated by NVIDIA, as well as expert guidance and financial support – freeing up startups to focus on shipping transformative AI solutions that redefine industries.”

NVIDIA Blackwell

The offer is packed with perks for eligible startups:

• Cloud Credits: Up to $150,000 for development and scaling

• Inference Credits: $10,000 focused on inference workloads

• Discounted Long-Term Plans: Lower pricing for those betting big on AI

• Hardware Access: Priority access to Blackwell GPUs

• Marketing Support: Opportunities for exposure across Nebius channels

Startups that get accepted into the AI Lift program will receive one-on-one technical guidance and hands-on help to make the most of Nebius’ infrastructure. Nebius says its platform supports full-stack AI workloads, and companies will also get access to real-time insights to help them steer their product and business decisions.

Founders interested in the program can apply through NVIDIA’s Inception platform. The program is free to join and open to startups at all stages.

With Nebius putting serious money and infrastructure behind its startup push, and NVIDIA continuing to build out its ecosystem of early-stage AI players, this collaboration is aimed at removing some of the biggest bottlenecks slowing down innovation.

Founded by Arkady Volozh, the former CEO of Yandex, Nebius is pushing ahead with plans to scale its AI capabilities. Volozh highlighted that the latest financing will accelerate the development of GPU clusters, cloud platforms, and other tools for AI developers.