Scale the team you already have
The thing AI can't replace at a startup is your builders, and their time is the scarcest capital you have. Level is the operating layer that keeps them on the product: founder-led practice (Stanford MBA, YC alum, raised $8M from Tier 1 VCs), running treasury, R&D credits, QSBS, board decks, and the gross-profit-per-engineer-hour math most founders never see.
By startup vertical
AI Startups →
Custom-AI workflows, agent builders, foundation-model wrappers, vertical AI. R&D credits may apply to documented qualified research; amounts depend on qualified expenses and eligibility.
Software & SaaS →
Pre-revenue to Series B. Investor metrics (ARR, NRR, magic number), QSBS records review and eligibility coordination, treasury, board decks.
Healthcare & Digital Health →
Digital health, telemed, biotech, healthtech. Multi-state regulatory, CMS compliance, runway forecasting through clinical milestones.
Why founders work with Level
Most fractional CFO firms are reformed bookkeepers running monthly variance reports. We're not that.
Founder-led, not partner-delegated
Sam leads engagement oversight. Stanford MBA, YC alum (W22), StartX, raised $8M from Tier 1 VCs as a founder. Resident alien himself, so the O1/green-card founder tax mess is firsthand.
Buyer-side perspective
Stephen Chou, our M&A and capital-markets partner, came up at Translink Capital ($1B AUM VC), Cisco Corp Dev, and Credit Suisse banking ($8B+ in M&A executed). Most recently CFO at FitXR, a venture-backed VR company. He's been in the IC seat your investors are sitting in.
Tax strategy on staff
Kenneth May, EA, 45+ years tax planning. R&D credit work, QSBS records review and eligibility coordination, Entity-choice analysis, including when an S election conflicts with a venture path. Federally licensed to represent founders in front of the IRS.
What we actually do
Hands-on with the stuff that moves the needle. Not advisory PowerPoints.
Treasury optimization
Build a treasury plan from payroll reserves, near-term obligations, liquidity, counterparty risk, fees and tax treatment. A 4.5-5% yield is a fictional sensitivity, not a current quote from Mercury, Ramp or Rho. At illustrative $5M invested for a full year at 4.8%, gross interest is $240K before fees and taxes; changing balances or rates changes the result. A $10M balance at 4.5-5% would yield $450K-500K on the same assumptions. Check current terms and access before moving cash; income is not a guaranteed engagement payback.
R&D tax credits
Qualifying research requires documented technical uncertainty, experimentation, eligible activities and qualified expenses; custom software or AI work does not qualify automatically. The 6-14% range is an illustrative sensitivity, not a statutory credit rate. Eligible small businesses can elect up to $500K against employer payroll taxes, subject to actual credit, liability and election rules. The less-than-$5M gross-receipts test is joined by a five-tax-year receipts-history test and group rules. Review Form 6765 and Form 8974 requirements before claiming.
QSBS records review and eligibility coordination
QSBS requires qualifying original-issue C-corp stock, an eligible business and shareholder, applicable asset tests and the required holding period. For stock acquired after July 4, 2025, the phased exclusion is 50% after 3 years, 75% after 4 years and 100% after 5 years; the per-issuer exclusion limit is the greater of the applicable $15M dollar limit or 10 times qualifying basis, with prior-exclusion coordination and other limits. Earlier stock uses different rules, including the older $10M limit. Formation alone does not secure eligibility; we coordinate records and tax review before issuance or an exit.
Board decks and investor reporting
Monthly investor updates, board decks, KPI tracking that maps to the metrics your stage actually cares about. ARR, magic number, payback period, Rule of 40 for software. Burn multiple, runway, gross margin trend for everyone.
Cloud and AI credits
Startup credits are conditional provider offers, not cash and not guaranteed retroactive refunds. Microsoft describes up to $150K of Azure credits unlocked over time; AWS currently advertises up to $200K for eligible Portfolio applicants, with different Founders and invitation-only tiers. Confirm approved products, prior usage, expiry and provider access before forecasting savings. The prior $50K-$500K combined range is not a verified universally available award. We help document eligibility and application timing; approval belongs to each provider.
S-corp election timing
Coordinate entity choice, 83(b), ISO/AMT and founder compensation with your tax professional. An S-corp election generally conflicts with C-corp QSBS and institutional venture financing; consider it only for entities not pursuing those paths. We model eligible W-2/distribution scenarios from actual facts with the relevant costs and tax interactions disclosed.
Founder-specific tax complexity
O1 visa founders, resident-alien founders, 83(b) elections on early stock, AMT impact of ISO exercises, dual-state residency for remote founders. Experience with these situations helps identify the facts your tax and legal advisers need.
Bookkeeping that scales
Bookkeeping starts at $500/month to create the clean data layer. Our team scopes monthly close and authorized AR, AP or payroll work from the records available in your books. Volume, complexity, software access and processing authority are agreed on the call; full AR/AP/payroll processing is not automatically included at the bookkeeping price floor. CPA on staff handles tax and compliance. Sam handles strategy. Three roles, one engagement.
Pricing by stage
Bookkeeping starts at $500/month, consistent with our pricing page. Advisory ranges below are planning budgets; actual scope and fees are quoted after review.
Stage
Pre-seed / Seed
Bookkeeping
$500+ / month
Advisory
$1.5K - $3K / month
What's included
Light touch. Monthly close, basic investor reporting, treasury setup, R&D credit review.
Stage
Series A / B
Bookkeeping
$500+ / month
Advisory
$3K - $5K / month; larger scopes custom
What's included
Full board deck cadence, investor reporting, treasury management, tax planning, runway modeling.
Stage
Pre-exit / growth stage
Bookkeeping
Custom
Advisory
Custom
What's included
QSBS records review and eligibility coordination, exit-readiness diligence, M&A modeling, tax-optimized exit planning.
Primary sources, reviewed October 8, 2026
- Public Law 119-21, section 70431: acquisition-date, holding-period and QSBS limit changes
- IRS Schedule D instructions: qualified-business, stock and asset tests
- IRS Form 6765 instructions: qualified expenses and payroll-credit eligibility
- IRS payroll research credit: election, employer taxes and carryforward
- Microsoft for Startups: conditional Azure credit benefits
- AWS Activate: current tiers, eligibility and approved credit scope
Content reviewed . Read the revision history.
Operating review
Software-business decisions the numbers should explain
The margin, cash, and operating questions we check first when reviewing your numbers.
Does the runway model include committed cash costs?
Recurring revenue and an income statement do not identify every upcoming funding event.
Is acquisition payback a profit calculation or a cash calculation?
Cohort age, included spend and predictive settings change the comparison.
Which infrastructure cost is variable with the service delivered?
A billing category does not by itself establish the cost behavior used in a growth decision.
Simple pricing
Three tiers, one ladder.
$500+/mo
Bookkeeping
The clean data layer: monthly books, reconciliations, and organized financials AI can work with.
$1,500-$5,000/mo
Scale
The full AI operating layer: custom agents, weekly actions, and benchmarks to grow margin per hour.
Custom
Platform / Multi-Office
Multi-branch benchmarking and scorecards for PE-backed and multi-location groups.
Know your runway and next funding decision
Review burn, cash runway, unit economics and the milestones your budget can support. We start with your priorities, then analyze the agreed financial records.
No commitment. Real numbers, not generic advice.