Introducing the Vast.ai Startup Program

February 7, 2026
3 Min Read
By Team Vast

Introducing the Vast.ai Startup Program: AI Infrastructure Without the Burn Rate

Startups can now get $2,500 in free GPU credits when they move workloads to Vast.ai.

To apply, get in touch with our team to share a bit about your project and compute needs. From there, we'll finalize your credit offer, help you configure the right setup, and get you up and running quickly. You'll also have access to 24/7 priority support throughout the credit period.

Compute credits apply across Vast.ai's global GPU marketplace, with access to everything from consumer-grade cards to high-end accelerators like A100s and H200s.

The Vast.ai Startup Program gives startups an on-ramp to the same platform that teams rely on well beyond the early stage. That's because Vast.ai is designed to scale alongside you - without long-term commitments or runaway costs.

Built for Real AI Workloads

From day one, Vast.ai supports the tools and workflows that teams already use. Launch preconfigured environments with Jupyter, Docker, RAPIDS, and Hugging Face to train deep learning models, run large-scale experiments, and process massive datasets on demand.

We offer a growing selection of ready-to-run AI models in our Model Library, plus thousands of templates to get started immediately - or deploy your own custom model anytime. Your team can even collaborate across departments and campuses, avoiding duplicated infrastructure and fragmented workflows.

Most importantly, with Vast.ai, your team can cut costs without cutting capability. Reduce infrastructure expenses by up to 81% compared to major cloud GPU providers, while paying only for what you need, when you need it.

Plus, most startups can migrate existing workloads with minimal changes and begin running jobs shortly after approval.

Secure, Compliant, and Production-Ready

Vast.ai is SOC 2 Type II certified and designed to support all of your security and compliance needs from the start.

Run workloads in isolated instances with end-to-end encryption and full control over compute environments to keep your sensitive data protected. Our Secure Cloud option lets you filter for GPUs from our vetted datacenter partners for even higher security needs.

Notably, these safeguards support reproducible research via consistent environments, as well as compliance-friendly configurations aligned with GDPR and HIPAA requirements.

With Vast.ai Serverless, moving from development to production is even easier. Inference workloads run through a fully serverless API that automatically routes to the most cost-effective GPUs available, according to your performance requirements. This eliminates manual instance management and capacity planning - so you can leverage our distributed GPU fleet with minimal overhead.

Get Started with Vast.ai Today

For early-stage teams, access to affordable GPU compute is crucial. But there's more to it than that. You also want infrastructure that scales as you grow and supports evolving security and compliance needs - all without locking you into long-term contracts.

The Vast.ai Startup Program helps you get there faster.

Apply today to get up to 2,500 free compute hours and start building on Vast.ai on your own terms.

Vast AI

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