Founders Can Turn 2026 Tax Bills into Clean Energy Investments

Founders First Advisory unveils strategy leveraging Inflation Reduction Act credits for EV infrastructure

As tax season intensifies in 2026, high-earning founders, business owners, and investors are exploring new ways to manage their federal tax liabilities while supporting critical U.S. infrastructure. Founders First Advisory, led by Chairman and CEO Corbin Cowan, has introduced a structured initiative that allows qualified individuals to redirect portions of their tax obligations into equity-backed clean energy projects, particularly through a partnership with WattUp USA.

The strategy capitalizes on clean energy tax incentives expanded and made transferable under the 2022 Inflation Reduction Act (IRA). These credits, originally aimed at large corporations for projects in solar, wind, EVs, battery storage, manufacturing, infrastructure, and energy security, can now be monetized—turning tax planning into an opportunity for direct investment in growing sectors.

“This is not a loophole or an aggressive tax strategy,” said Cowan. “These are legislated incentives created by Congress to drive infrastructure investment. What we’ve done is structure access so that founders and investors—who typically fund these systems indirectly—can now participate directly, while improving their own financial outcomes.”

Participants in the program may offset or reduce current-year tax liabilities through qualifying clean energy infrastructure credits and convert what would have been tax payments into equity stakes in revenue-generating assets like WattUp USA’s expanding network of ultra-fast EV charging stations. The company is using this strategy in its current raise of $130 million to deploy 200 cutting-edge stations across the U.S.

Cowan notes the opportunity is both time-sensitive and capacity-limited due to regulatory requirements and deal flow. “This is one of the few moments where tax planning, infrastructure policy, and private investment are fully aligned,” he added. “But it requires precise timing and the right structure. After year-end, many of these advantages reset or disappear.”

Cowan also notes that while the current tax strategy is time sensitive, Founders First is focused on many investment opportunities in addition to the current tax credits. In all, the advisory blends the best strategy for each client with available deal structure as well as a private lending network: “Our ability to make outcomes such as a $652K acquisition, for example, achievable for the vast majority of successful business owners with little or no long-term cash out of pocket is a huge advantage for the clients we serve.”

Founders First Advisory uses a performance-first engagement model, aligning its advisory fees with delivered client success. The firm draws on Cowan’s 25-year background in corporate finance, business advisory, and capital structuring to provide strategies typically reserved for ultra-high-net-worth or corporate entities. It acts as a virtual family office, coordinating tax strategy, operational optimization, and access to vetted infrastructure opportunities.The initiative targets founders and business owners, high-income W-2 earners, pre-retirees with significant tax exposure, and individuals evaluating broader tax repositioning strategies. For more information, visit FoundersFirst.io.