Google Inc. is turning to the startup ecosystem for an edge in the virtual assistant market.

The company today announced a new investment program meant to support early-stage teams working to extend the capabilities of Google Assistant. According to an official blog post, the initiative will seek to foster software and hardware startups alike. In the latter area, Google indicated that it will place a particular emphasis on firms building new devices powered by its assistant.

Google offers to support participants in multiple ways. The search giant will provide capital to support startups’ development and growth efforts, as well as give them access to its public cloud.

Although Google didn’t detail what this access entails, it likely comes with discounted or free infrastructure for Google Assistant projects. The search giant already offers credits for startups looking to adopt its cloud platform. Teams can currently apply for up $100,000 worth of free services from the search giant via a program similar to those operated by rivals Amazon Web Services Inc. and Microsoft Corp.

On top of offering various financial incentives, Google will allow participating startups to seek technical advice from its internal product teams. The company even promises to provide early access to new products and features.

The latter perk is mainly designed to help with sales activities. A startup granted early access to upcoming features with the potential to benefit its product can have an integration ready by the time they’re rolled out. Also in the spirit of enabling teams to better target customers, the search giant will provide “promotional support through Google marketing channels.”

The company has invested in four startups so far. Two, BotSociety Inc. and Pulse Labs Inc., focus on easing the development of apps  for Google Assistant. Another, Edwin Technology Corp., is harnessing the virtual assistant as a learning tool for students taking English as a foreign language. And the fourth participant is a startup called Go Moment Inc. that lets hotels use Google Assistant devices to answer common inquiries from guests.

Amazon.com Inc., Google’s main rival in the virtual assistant market, is also working closely with the startup ecosystem. The company has created a $100 million fund to support teams building new voice technologies and provides development tools for extending Alexa’s features. Moreover, Amazon recently revealed that it’s working on new artificial intelligence capabilities for the assistant which could provide a big boost to outside developers.

Image: Google