The R&D tax credit, defensible by construction.
Most tools slap an AI label on your activities and hope it survives an audit. Ricerca enforces the IRC §41 statutory tests in software — the four-part test, the §41(d)(4) exclusions, and the contract and controlled-group rules — then has R&D experts review and finalize every study. Federal and state credits, plus the new §174A expensing, captured and built to defend.
- Reviewed & finalized by R&D experts
- Backed by Audit Protection
- Your data is never used to train public AI
Two bad options — until now.
For years, companies chose between expensive consultants (slow, costly, opaque) and automation-only software (fast and cheap, but shallow and unaccountable). Ricerca pairs AI speed with expert rigor so you don’t have to choose.
Experts finalize every study
Built to defend on exam
Credit + §174A, captured
If you’re solving hard technical problems, you likely qualify.
The R&D credit isn’t just for labs. We focus on the industries that chronically underclaim.
SaaS & Software
New features, novel algorithms, AI/ML, scalability and security engineering.
ExploreTechnology & Hardware
Prototyping, firmware, electronics, materials, test and validation.
ExploreManufacturing
New and improved products and processes, automation, tooling, yield.
ExplorePharmaceutical & Biotech
Discovery, formulation, assay development, preclinical and process scale-up.
ExploreWe meet your data where it lives.
Ricerca pulls wages, the general ledger, and engineering evidence from the tools you already use, so intake is near-effortless and every qualified dollar traces back to source. And you can always start from a secure spreadsheet, GL, or payroll export — no integration is ever required.
- Live Connect today with a direct OAuth link
- Rolling out Connector built — being enabled now
- Planned On the roadmap
Accounting & ERP
QuickBooks Online connects directly today. The rest connect through our unified accounting connector — one secure, read-only link to your general ledger.
- Live QuickBooks Online
- Rolling out Xero
- Rolling out NetSuite
- Rolling out Sage Intacct
- Rolling out Dynamics 365 Business Central
- Rolling out FreshBooks
Payroll & HR
One secure connection through our unified payroll connector reaches hundreds of payroll and HRIS systems — these are the ones we see most.
- Rolling out ADP
- Rolling out Gusto
- Rolling out Paychex
- Rolling out Justworks
- Rolling out Rippling
- Rolling out TriNet
- Rolling out Workday
- Rolling out BambooHR
Engineering evidence
Contemporaneous proof of experimentation from the tools your engineers already use. Metadata only — commits, pull requests, and tickets. Never your source code.
- Rolling out GitHub
- Rolling out Jira
- Planned GitLab
- Planned Bitbucket
- Planned Linear
- Planned Azure DevOps
Don’t see your system? Tell us what you use — our connector layer reaches hundreds of payroll, accounting, and HRIS platforms, and secure exports work today regardless.
All product names, logos, and brands are property of their respective owners, used for identification only; no endorsement is implied.
Every layer of benefit, from one substantiated base.
Behind the study is a purpose-built engine: it enforces the §41 tests before counting a dollar, computes the full benefit stack, and challenges its own work before experts finalize.
Both credit methods, compared
Regular Credit and Alternative Simplified Credit computed side by side, so you file the stronger result.
Payroll offset for startups
Qualified small businesses can apply up to $500K/year of the credit against payroll taxes via §41(h) and Form 8974.
§41(f) controlled groups
Related entities aggregated as one taxpayer, with the credit allocated across members — documented in its own statement.
State credits, same base
State R&D credits computed from the same substantiated QREs, with each state’s own rules applied.
Filing-ready forms
Form 6765 (Dec. 2024 revision, Sections A–G), Form 8974, and a pro-forma Form 3800 that reconcile on their face.
Adversarial AI review
An independent AI examiner red-teams every study, a second model family runs QC — and experts make the final call.
Domestic R&D is fully deductible again.
The One Big Beautiful Bill Act created IRC §174A, restoring immediate, full expensing of domestic research costs for tax years beginning after December 31, 2024 — software development included. Eligible small businesses may even amend 2022–2024 returns for refunds.
- Immediate deduction for domestic R&E — no more 5-year amortization
- Software development costs explicitly included
- Small businesses (≤ $31M avg. receipts) may apply it retroactively
View data
| Treatment | First-year deduction |
|---|---|
| Prior TCJA §174 (5-yr amortization) | $100,000 |
| New §174A (immediate) | $1,000,000 |
How we use AI — and what stays human
AI accelerates intake, document parsing, activity identification, narrative drafting, and QRE computation. But qualification, amounts, and the final call are decided by people. Our R&D experts review and finalize every study before it’s issued.
See the processSerious about your data
Encryption in transit and at rest, least-privilege access, data minimization, and a clear retention policy. Your confidential data is never used to train public or third-party AI models.
Our security approachWe stand behind your R&D claim
Every Ricerca study includes Audit Protection. If the IRS examines the R&D tax credit claim from your study, we represent you and provide the examiner with the documentation and information they request — under the terms of your engagement agreement.
Focused on your R&D claim
Audit Protection covers the R&D study and the related federal R&D tax credits only — not other parts of your return, other tax years, other credits or deductions, payroll taxes, state or local taxes, penalties, or interest.
Based on accurate information
Protection applies as long as the information you give us for the study is accurate and complete. If it isn’t, Audit Protection does not apply and we will not represent you on the resulting issue.
A rigorous study, without the drag.
AI compresses the busywork; our R&D experts ensure the rigor. Most of the lift happens behind the scenes.
- Step 1
Scope & connect
We scope your R&D and connect payroll, general ledger, and engineering systems. AI does the heavy lifting of intake so your team barely lifts a finger.
- Step 2
Identify & substantiate
AI surfaces qualifying activities and drafts technical narratives mapped to the IRC §41 four-part test; you and your engineers confirm the facts.
- Step 3
Compute the credit
We compute Qualified Research Expenses and compare the Regular and Alternative Simplified methods to the right result — alongside your §174A position.
- Step 4
Expert review & deliver
Our R&D experts review and finalize the study before it’s issued. You receive audit-ready workpapers and Form 6765 support you can hand to your preparer.
Built on the standards examiners look for
Every study is structured around the authorities the IRS actually applies — not marketing claims.