February 28, 2025 • 26 mins
"Every day I'm not learning, I feel like I'm going backwards." - Alex White
In this episode of Brave New Wealth, host Julienna sits down with Alex White, Co-Founder & CEO of SUBCITY, to explore the power of tax incentives and economic opportunities for businesses. Alex shares his journey from the music industry to tech, his passion for lifelong learning, and how SUBCITY helps businesses unlock tax credits and financial benefits. 🎶💡
🔥 Key Takeaways:
✅ Alex’s journey from the music industry to leading Subsidi
✅ How SUBCITY helps businesses access economic incentives & tax credits
✅ The power of collaboration with Engineered Tax Services
✅ Insights into small business growth & funding opportunities
✅ Exciting innovations in the biotech industry
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Learn more about SUBCITY:Â https://subcity.com/
Thank you to sponsor Engineered Tax Services:Â @Engineered-Tax-ServicesÂ
📌 Don't forget to LIKE, COMMENT & SUBSCRIBE for more insights on building wealth & business success!Â
#BraveNewWealth #BusinessGrowth #TaxCredits #Entrepreneurship #SUBCITY #MusicIndustry #WealthBuilding #Biotech
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Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
(00:08):
Welcome to the Brave New Wealth podcast.
I am your host, Julienna.
In this podcast, we discuss wealth from many different perspectives, from the mental,physical, social and financial perspective.
Bienvenue à tout le monde.
Bienvenu à todos.
Welcome and ale.
Everyone is welcome here.
(00:29):
This podcast is sponsored by Engineer Tax Services, a subsidiary of Engineer Tax Advisory.
Our goal is to empower businesses, business owners, CPAs, advisors with proven expertise,education and innovative strategies to reduce client's tax burden.
(00:51):
In each episode, I will bring to you an expert in their field who will share with us theirunique insights on what they have learned throughout their journey.
My hope is that you are inspired to take action to
Change may be something to level up in your business and in your personal life.
(01:12):
Today, I am really excited to have with us Alex White, who is also a partner at EngineerTech Services.
I love the description that you put on your LinkedIn.
So just to, you know, to use your word, Alex tells us that he loves music and that it getsstuck in his head.
He loves movies that make him think and personal productivity and efficiency acts are athing.
(01:37):
The last block of the long run and really talking to people and finding ways to constantlyimprove.
I really love that because it's different from the, you know, many of the descriptionsthat we see on LinkedIn.
Alex White lives in New York.
He is the co-founder and CEO of SUBCITY We will learn more about
what he's done and what he's accomplished.
(01:59):
I'm really excited to dig into more into what subsidy is about and also, you know, whatyou do outside of work.
So Alex, welcome.
I'm going to give you an opportunity to maybe tell us in a nutshell, because this was verymuch a wide description of who you are, but please tell us in a nutshell, who is Alex
White?
Maybe something you're passionate about to give us a little, you know, taste of who AlexWhite is.
(02:23):
Yeah, well, thank you so much for having me.
I love all the languages you use to introduce and welcome everyone.
My sister is really into languages and knows seven of them fluently.
I got much more into business and startup land in English.
Talking about myself is always fun.
That LinkedIn paragraph I haven't read or revisited in a couple of decades, but it stillstands the test of time.
(02:51):
I took a personality and leadership diagnostic test in 2009 and again in 2021, 12 yearsapart.
I'd forgotten that I'd taken both of them and my two top values were actually the sameacross those years.
So I feel like that is good validation of those values, which were curiosity and lifelonglearning.
(03:11):
So I'm just a very curious person in terms of who I am.
Every day I'm not learning.
feel like I'm going backwards.
Married, live outside New York City in Westchester, two kids, five and six, both girls.
And I like to start companies and learn every day.
And really excited to talk with you today.
(03:32):
Well, thank you so much, Alex.
And I have yet to see you without a smile on your face.
So Alex and I met at a conference here in Dallas about a year ago.
And I was very, very impressed, you know, with your presentation and with, know.
just your friendliness and we just happened to almost join engineer tech services at thesame time, I think just a couple of months apart or something like that.
(03:57):
So that was, that was very exciting.
So before we dig into what, you know, what you do now and what subsidy is about, I do liketo ask my guests, what is maybe something you've done recently that helped you come out of
your comfort zone, that helped you grow, whether, know, it's something you
learn in a book and you decided to implement or is, you know, a new health or mentalhealth habit or anything that, you know, you've done recently that, um, you, you know, you
(04:26):
could see, I really learned from this experience.
Yeah.
I spent the first 35 or more years never running outside in the winter or doing muchphysical activity outside.
I always thought it kind of hurt my lungs.
And then during COVID.
And a little after I realized, you know, the gyms were closed and if I wanted to exercise,I needed to run outside and it really wasn't as bad as I thought.
(04:49):
And now it's one of my favorite things is getting suited up in warm weather gear and goingon runs outside in the cold.
Even if it's raining or snowing, I actually started playing soccer with a group of guysand asked when we were moving indoors as it started to get colder here in New York.
And they said, we
(05:10):
play all winter long.
sometimes we'll shovel snow off the field.
And, you know, I think if you have the right attitude and the right gear and preparation,you know, things that seem scary or uncomfortable can actually be not that way at all.
Thank you.
This is, this is great.
And yeah, I lived in Switzerland for seven years and they have the saying that, you know,there's no bad weather, only the wrong closing.
(05:36):
Exactly.
And I also lived in Utah where, you know, back in the college days and I would run outsidein the snow and do all that exercise, but I'm going to tell you the truth.
Like thick sissies made me a little weak in that regard.
And, you know, I work out indoors when the weather it's a little too cold outside.
(05:57):
I do love to run.
But yeah, I've become a little weak.
I noticed.
I'm not as enthusiastic.
So I admire what you're doing and I can only reminisce on the days where I would run inthe We're going in the opposite directions.
Yes.
And with the soccer, so my youngest plays soccer for MLS next.
that's like the, the high league, you know, for, and he, yeah, same thing.
(06:21):
I mean, unless it's like thundering and really, really wet, like there is no excuse.
Like they have to go train.
I love that for you.
It's so my next question was going to.
you be how do you balance work and the stress of life?
And I can see that, you know, you've already shared some of the things you do, which, youknow, the sports and I also know that you are a big music lover.
(06:43):
So I don't know you want to tell us a little bit where that come from.
And maybe if you play an instrument and maybe some of your favorite bands.
Yeah.
I grew up around music.
My dad's a professional cellist and I played in bands and worked at a recording studio allthrough high school.
Thought I wanted to be a rock star.
and then realized I didn't like performing my songs in front of other people.
(07:04):
And that is a major career fatal flaw for a musician if you don't like performing your ownsongs in front of other people.
But I still love the music industry and that intersection of art and commerce and wantedto be the record mogul in the corner office signing the bands that I thought were going to
become popular.
And so I started a website called The Next Big Sound in 2008 with two other friends.
(07:28):
at Northwestern where I went to college.
And this let anyone create their own fantasy record label and sign the bands they thoughtwere going to become popular to that label.
We track how early on you identified new talent before anybody else and chart youalongside the artists that you discovered.
And we launched the site, raised a very small seed round and had thousands of bands andusers and no way to make any money.
(07:51):
And the financial apocalypse of 2008 hit and
We were about to shut the company down when we got into a program out in Colorado calledTechstars and moved the company out there and switched from a consumer site where people
were signing bands to a data analytics platform that tracked the music activity of wherepeople were already interacting with music online.
(08:12):
Back then it was MySpace and I like and Last FM and a bunch of sites that don't existanymore.
But over time we added Spotify and YouTube and SoundCloud and Twitter and Facebook and allthe different services as they came and went.
I'm going to tie this back to the balancing life and health and wellness part of yourquestion in a minute.
(08:33):
But that company went on to be acquired by Pandora in 2015.
I worked there for five years, running ultimately all content and programming acrossmusic, comedy and podcasts, both the human programming team.
So we had genre experts, the head of pop, rock, jazz, blues, classical, country, comedy,and the algorithmic.
(08:55):
recommendation and personalization systems.
And really we can talk more about that part of my career, but it was really funintersection of the music industry and listener data and, you know, tech company.
And after that experience, I was very fortunate.
I took a year off.
I call it my sabbatical.
(09:16):
And I was able to burn down my to read, to watch, to listen to list of everything and kindof start.
from scratch and figure out, right, what kind of breakfast, lunch, and dinner do I need toeat during the day to feel healthy and energetic and alive?
What kind of exercise is too much during the week that I'm risk of getting injured oroverdoing it?
(09:39):
And what's too little?
And, you know, how much can I read and learn and, and what is the best way to engage with,with the world?
So that was a really wonderful way to layer back in from.
scratch kind of what is a perfect day, morning, week, and month look like for mepersonally with two young kids and a wife who works in finance.
(10:04):
And that was kind of the baseline.
And I realized once I stacked everything together that I still had six to eight hours aday or more where I wanted to just work on hard problems with smart people.
And that's when I started looking and exploring ideas related to.
cities and small businesses and FinTech and real estate and trying to find a new companyto start, which ultimately became Subsidi.
(10:29):
That is wonderful.
Wow.
That's a lot of information.
can tell that your brain is just constantly moving and working.
Yeah, for better or worse.
Yes, yes, yes.
Now know the feeling.
So yeah, you're ahead of me because I was going to come to that transition and you talkeda little bit about that, know, transitioning to Subsidi.
(10:50):
Just to tell our listener, what exactly is subsidy?
What does it do?
Because you know, I was going to ask you about the transition and you kind of did it forme and told us how it happened.
But yes, if you could just explain what exactly is subsidy and how does it help, you know,businesses?
Yeah.
(11:11):
So subsidy, we've digitized about 2000 local, state and federal economic incentives andtax credits.
So whether it's the federal government and a program like the Research and Development TaxCredit to incentivize innovation in the U.S.
or a individual state like Pennsylvania passing a workforce training and development grantand loan program, or a locality saying, if you fix your signage in our downtown corridor,
(11:38):
we will provide a up to $3,000 matching grant for your facade improvement.
There are all these incentives that are in place to help
businesses fix their outer appearance, hire and train employees, buy equipment, invest inreal estate, invest in their communities.
(11:58):
And yet they're mostly buried on municipal websites and PDFs and broken links.
And we realized that if we could catalog and digitize this database of incentives, wecould match it.
to individual businesses based on their address, based on their sector, based on theirhiring profile, based on a whole number of factors.
(12:19):
And so what we built with subsidy is kind of three assets.
There's the database of all the incentives in one place.
We think it's the most comprehensive database of incentives that exists in the U.S.
A matching algorithm to pair companies with the programs they should consider in apersonalized list.
And then an application engine to help streamline the gathering of documents and detailsand
(12:40):
filing in order to actually claim these incentives.
that was really the three areas that we were developing with Subsidi over three years.
We started the company in 2021 and we were acquired by Engineered Tax Services in Augustof 2024.
Wonderful.
So that's great.
(13:02):
So, and that also explained, you know, how you are connected with the Engineered TaxServices.
Before we get more into this, would like to just for our listeners, could you give us anexample of a company that may be one of your most exciting experience seeing how a company
(13:23):
who had no idea or struggled with finding out all the things that were available as far asincentives go, and then you came in and showed them what was available and what was the
outcome of that?
Sure.
I can even share one of those clients was how we actually met ETS and engineer taxservices for the first time.
(13:43):
So it's always a fun one.
This was a real estate developer in Las Vegas who had built hundreds of high efficiency,energy efficiency units doing the right thing in the desert, know, leakage and, and they
had no idea about a program called 45L.
So, which was designed to incentivize builders.
(14:06):
and real estate developers to build energy efficiency condos, multifamily and homes.
And we generated a personalized incentive report for them and walked them through theprograms.
And this one caught their attention because they were building to a energy efficiencystandard and didn't realize that there was an incentive in place for them to do so.
(14:31):
so based on the size, they were very sizable developer.
and number of units they wanted to move forward with certifying hundreds of units for thiscredit.
And so I went, we didn't do that work personally at subsidy, but we have a network ofproviders and referral firms.
So I talked to all the leaders in the marketplace who do energy incentives andcertification and engineering based programs.
(14:54):
And it was most impressed with ETS from a professionalism standpoint, from a fulfillment,from a referral recommendation standpoint, and made the connection.
And
ATS was able to certify nearly a million dollar tax credit for this company.
And that was a perfect example of the win, win, win, win, win for everyone, which is whatis so intoxicating and exciting about the space, even if it's very nerdy and very
(15:23):
technical.
But the idea that the government put in place this incentive to develop hot energyefficiency units and then a private and real estate developer.
didn't know this program existed and was still doing the right thing and that we couldconnect them with that program, with the certification, with the tax credit so that they
(15:43):
can build more units and affordable housing and all the other great developments thatthey're doing is really, really awesome.
So success to us would be helping thousands of small and medium sized business ownersidentify, claim and collect billions of dollars in tax incentives over the next 10 years.
And I really feel like part of ETS has that ecosystem and foundation.
(16:04):
where we can actually achieve that.
So that's just one example.
We work primarily with manufacturers prior to the acquisition.
So a lot of manufacturers who were buying equipment or hiring and retraining andupskilling their workforce or needing to reduce their energy costs and bills through their
(16:25):
utility.
There's lots of examples there.
But for the most part, it just allows these companies
have access to the programs that all the big four and the Fortune 500 have access to, butfor too long, you know, have been kind of shut out of.
That's amazing.
(16:45):
That really is amazing.
And I also really appreciate how professional, clean, clear, and concise those reportsare.
And there is not one email I send these days where I don't, you know, offer this beautifulservice for business owners.
mean, it's
It's a game changer.
can bring so much to any business that doesn't take full advantage of what's available tothem.
(17:11):
And the fact that we are there to help with whatever they find, whatever we do, we willhelp with.
And if we don't do it, we know who does it.
So it's a very tight professional ecosystem.
I really love that.
Yeah.
So now we're calling those reports engineered opportunity reports.
still powered by the subsidy technology and database and matching, but it's just displayedthrough ETS and delivered via our client development directors or CPA partners or
(17:41):
accounting firms.
And really the hard part of this business is not necessarily the matching or the database,even though those are tremendous investments we've made and work that we've been doing.
It's really trying to figure out how do you work with the
finance team, the owners, the CPAs, and that whole financial ecosystem around these realestate investors and these companies in a way that they can all make sure that they're not
(18:07):
leaving money on the table with any of these incentive programs that are out there.
Absolutely.
And I also love that, you know, whatever they do, we don't touch, we're just there tocompliment and to really help serve the client and bring as much value as possible.
That's really amazing.
Exactly.
They don't have to break up with their CPA.
just do as a licensed engineering firm, we can do a lot of the certifications and heavylifting and engineering based studies that, you know, they wouldn't be able to accomplish
(18:36):
on their own.
Definitely, definitely.
So CPAs, advisors, CFOs, please reach out.
We are there to help with all these things.
now with, so
You've kind of answered my next question also, which was, how you found that collaborationwith Internet Tech Services and you did answer that, meaning that, you know, you find the
(19:00):
data and we're there to support, to fulfill and to help things move very smoothly.
And I've been a witness of this, how just smooth the whole process is utilizing all theexpertise, you know, on that at every level.
So how does that compare with maybe how...
you know, from, where you were before to now having just this house full of, you know,tools, like how does that feel?
(19:28):
And that's the state, you know, I don't want to.
No, it's night and day.
really is.
And before we were going, we were, had raised venture capital.
So by definition, we needed to find very high velocity, high growth businessopportunities.
And to us, that was definitely going directly to the business owners themselves.
(19:49):
with a pitch around personalized incentives and tax credit opportunities and lists forthem in their business.
And we even knew from the beginning that that was called, we called it hard mode goingdirect to the business owner because everyone, for better or worse, assumes that their CPA
is on top of all of these programs.
And so, you we would go to the business owner with a pitch of...
(20:12):
economic incentives and tax credits, and they would either forward it to their CPA or justdelete it because they assume that they were covered.
And if it was a legitimate program, they would be flagged by their CPA.
This was also during the height of the employee retention tax credit spam that a lot ofbusiness owners were receiving.
And so we kind of got, I think, caught up and tuned out with some of those pitches therebecause they thought it was just that one program and not the
(20:41):
thousands of other ones that we were tracking and trying to surface.
So what was most exciting to us about the ETS acquisition was over the last two decades,ETS has done the hard thing, which is build up thousands of personal relationships with
CPAs and accounting firms and ecosystem partners around the country, has a stellarreputation, and really is the
(21:08):
distribution channel that we need in order to deliver these opportunity reports tobusinesses, large and small.
rather than going to 10 different business owners with 10 kind of cold outreach pitches,we can go to one CPA and say, let us run an opportunity report for your 10 best clients.
And then we can present them together to that client and help them understand what'savailable.
(21:34):
ETS can fulfill the engineering-based incentives that require specialized expertise.
The CPA might be able to fulfill a couple of those programs.
And then sometimes if it's a small grant or a facade improvement program or a very basicsales and use tax exemption, then the business owner or the CFO or the virtual CFO could
(21:55):
maybe just do those programs directly.
So the expertise and ecosystem and trust and reputation that ETS has
is that kind of missing factor that we didn't have for the three years prior.
Wonderful, wonderful.
And I'm super excited that I arrived at a time where, you know, you were a part of ATS andI could use this.
(22:18):
It's a beautiful tool.
mean, there's not one, you know, person I've talked to and not one CPA that is not superimpressed and really want to see what that's about.
So that's very, very exciting.
So we're getting to the end of this great conversation.
I want to know and let our listeners know how they can reach you.
(22:39):
Like what's the best way to work with you?
What is your preference?
Yes, if they want to know more.
Well, they can always email me.
My name is Alex White.
So my email is a white at engineered tech services.com.
I'm on Twitter.
I'm dotting the notes as well, but yes, you know.
(23:02):
Yeah.
Email is the best.
I'm on Twitter or X at MrAlexWhite.
And I would be happy to talk to anyone about an opportunity report for themselves, ifthey're a business or a individual or their client, if they are a CPA or accounting firm.
Wonderful.
Wonderful.
(23:22):
And then before...
I let you go, what is an industry that you would be interested to find out more about?
Cause I'm still building my list and I'm, you know, that's something that I'm going to askmy guests.
Like what is an industry that you're curious about and would like to know more about?
Yeah.
Well, that's the best part of my job.
I get to meet with business owners and innovators and inventors across all differentcategories and dive into totally different, you know, aerospace and defense manufacturers,
(23:53):
food and beverage.
new consumer products to biotech, software companies, real estate projects of alldifferent shapes and sizes and everything in between.
Most recently, we've been running a lot of reports for biotech companies, specificallycancer related startups across Massachusetts, Texas, California, and a few other states.
(24:22):
And there's some really exciting innovations and grants and dollars available forcompanies like that to get to clinical trials, get through them, you know, and start
scaling.
So that's one industry and sector that I'm specifically excited about, think, biology,synthetic biology, and some of the life science opportunities that exist with the
(24:46):
combination of AI and the latest technology alongside
hospital work and advances we made in medicine are really exciting.
Wonderful.
Well, thank you so much, Alex.
I really appreciate you taking the time to come on the Brave New Wealth podcast to shareyour knowledge and experience with us and your fun journey.
(25:07):
And I'll make sure to put all the notes so that people can reach you and have access toeverything that Subsidi offers as well as engineer tech services.
And I'll see you soon and I will see you all next time.
Great.
I've really been loving the podcast so far.
I'm so glad you're doing it.
It reminds me of the kind of a comfort zone question you asked me earlier and I think it'sjust great for you to learn and have different folks and perspectives and viewpoint on.
(25:36):
And I love that our journey with ETS has followed, you know, similar trajectory and lovedmeeting you last summer in Texas when we first announced the deal and getting to know you
over the months.
past months as coworkers.
Thank you so much, Alex.
All right.
Thank you, everyone.
Thank you.
Thank you very much for listening to this episode of the Brave New Wealth podcast.
(26:01):
I'm always super excited to have the experts coming on to share their expertise andinsights to help the business owner entrepreneur level up their business.
I encourage you to go on YouTube to like and subscribe and write your comments.
If you are a CPA and advisor CFO, reach out and please let us know how we can help you.
(26:26):
I hope I will see you in the next episode.
A bientôt.
Welcome to the Brave New Wealth podcast.
I am your host, Julienna.
In this podcast, we discuss wealth from many different perspectives, from the mental,physical, social and financial perspective.
Bienvenue à tout le monde.
Bienvenu à todos.
Welcome and ale.
Everyone is welcome here.
(00:29):
This podcast is sponsored by Engineer Tax Services, a subsidiary of Engineer Tax Advisory.
Our goal is to empower businesses, business owners, CPAs, advisors with proven expertise,education and innovative strategies to reduce client's tax burden.
(00:51):
In each episode, I will bring to you an expert in their field who will share with us theirunique insights on what they have learned throughout their journey.
My hope is that you are inspired to take action to
Change may be something to level up in your business and in your personal life.
(01:12):
Today, I am really excited to have with us Alex White, who is also a partner at EngineerTech Services.
I love the description that you put on your LinkedIn.
So just to, you know, to use your word, Alex tells us that he loves music and that it getsstuck in his head.
He loves movies that make him think and personal productivity and efficiency acts are athing.
(01:37):
The last block of the long run and really talking to people and finding ways to constantlyimprove.
I really love that because it's different from the, you know, many of the descriptionsthat we see on LinkedIn.
Alex White lives in New York.
He is the co-founder and CEO of SUBCITY We will learn more about
what he's done and what he's accomplished.
(01:59):
I'm really excited to dig into more into what subsidy is about and also, you know, whatyou do outside of work.
So Alex, welcome.
I'm going to give you an opportunity to maybe tell us in a nutshell, because this was verymuch a wide description of who you are, but please tell us in a nutshell, who is Alex
White?
Maybe something you're passionate about to give us a little, you know, taste of who AlexWhite is.
(02:23):
Yeah, well, thank you so much for having me.
I love all the languages you use to introduce and welcome everyone.
My sister is really into languages and knows seven of them fluently.
I got much more into business and startup land in English.
Talking about myself is always fun.
That LinkedIn paragraph I haven't read or revisited in a couple of decades, but it stillstands the test of time.
(02:51):
I took a personality and leadership diagnostic test in 2009 and again in 2021, 12 yearsapart.
I'd forgotten that I'd taken both of them and my two top values were actually the sameacross those years.
So I feel like that is good validation of those values, which were curiosity and lifelonglearning.
(03:11):
So I'm just a very curious person in terms of who I am.
Every day I'm not learning.
feel like I'm going backwards.
Married, live outside New York City in Westchester, two kids, five and six, both girls.
And I like to start companies and learn every day.
And really excited to talk with you today.
(03:32):
Well, thank you so much, Alex.
And I have yet to see you without a smile on your face.
So Alex and I met at a conference here in Dallas about a year ago.
And I was very, very impressed, you know, with your presentation and with, know.
just your friendliness and we just happened to almost join engineer tech services at thesame time, I think just a couple of months apart or something like that.
(03:57):
So that was, that was very exciting.
So before we dig into what, you know, what you do now and what subsidy is about, I do liketo ask my guests, what is maybe something you've done recently that helped you come out of
your comfort zone, that helped you grow, whether, know, it's something you
learn in a book and you decided to implement or is, you know, a new health or mentalhealth habit or anything that, you know, you've done recently that, um, you, you know, you
(04:26):
could see, I really learned from this experience.
Yeah.
I spent the first 35 or more years never running outside in the winter or doing muchphysical activity outside.
I always thought it kind of hurt my lungs.
And then during COVID.
And a little after I realized, you know, the gyms were closed and if I wanted to exercise,I needed to run outside and it really wasn't as bad as I thought.
(04:49):
And now it's one of my favorite things is getting suited up in warm weather gear and goingon runs outside in the cold.
Even if it's raining or snowing, I actually started playing soccer with a group of guysand asked when we were moving indoors as it started to get colder here in New York.
And they said, we
(05:10):
play all winter long.
sometimes we'll shovel snow off the field.
And, you know, I think if you have the right attitude and the right gear and preparation,you know, things that seem scary or uncomfortable can actually be not that way at all.
Thank you.
This is, this is great.
And yeah, I lived in Switzerland for seven years and they have the saying that, you know,there's no bad weather, only the wrong closing.
(05:36):
Exactly.
And I also lived in Utah where, you know, back in the college days and I would run outsidein the snow and do all that exercise, but I'm going to tell you the truth.
Like thick sissies made me a little weak in that regard.
And, you know, I work out indoors when the weather it's a little too cold outside.
(05:57):
I do love to run.
But yeah, I've become a little weak.
I noticed.
I'm not as enthusiastic.
So I admire what you're doing and I can only reminisce on the days where I would run inthe We're going in the opposite directions.
Yes.
And with the soccer, so my youngest plays soccer for MLS next.
that's like the, the high league, you know, for, and he, yeah, same thing.
(06:21):
I mean, unless it's like thundering and really, really wet, like there is no excuse.
Like they have to go train.
I love that for you.
It's so my next question was going to.
you be how do you balance work and the stress of life?
And I can see that, you know, you've already shared some of the things you do, which, youknow, the sports and I also know that you are a big music lover.
(06:43):
So I don't know you want to tell us a little bit where that come from.
And maybe if you play an instrument and maybe some of your favorite bands.
Yeah.
I grew up around music.
My dad's a professional cellist and I played in bands and worked at a recording studio allthrough high school.
Thought I wanted to be a rock star.
and then realized I didn't like performing my songs in front of other people.
(07:04):
And that is a major career fatal flaw for a musician if you don't like performing your ownsongs in front of other people.
But I still love the music industry and that intersection of art and commerce and wantedto be the record mogul in the corner office signing the bands that I thought were going to
become popular.
And so I started a website called The Next Big Sound in 2008 with two other friends.
(07:28):
at Northwestern where I went to college.
And this let anyone create their own fantasy record label and sign the bands they thoughtwere going to become popular to that label.
We track how early on you identified new talent before anybody else and chart youalongside the artists that you discovered.
And we launched the site, raised a very small seed round and had thousands of bands andusers and no way to make any money.
(07:51):
And the financial apocalypse of 2008 hit and
We were about to shut the company down when we got into a program out in Colorado calledTechstars and moved the company out there and switched from a consumer site where people
were signing bands to a data analytics platform that tracked the music activity of wherepeople were already interacting with music online.
(08:12):
Back then it was MySpace and I like and Last FM and a bunch of sites that don't existanymore.
But over time we added Spotify and YouTube and SoundCloud and Twitter and Facebook and allthe different services as they came and went.
I'm going to tie this back to the balancing life and health and wellness part of yourquestion in a minute.
(08:33):
But that company went on to be acquired by Pandora in 2015.
I worked there for five years, running ultimately all content and programming acrossmusic, comedy and podcasts, both the human programming team.
So we had genre experts, the head of pop, rock, jazz, blues, classical, country, comedy,and the algorithmic.
(08:55):
recommendation and personalization systems.
And really we can talk more about that part of my career, but it was really funintersection of the music industry and listener data and, you know, tech company.
And after that experience, I was very fortunate.
I took a year off.
I call it my sabbatical.
(09:16):
And I was able to burn down my to read, to watch, to listen to list of everything and kindof start.
from scratch and figure out, right, what kind of breakfast, lunch, and dinner do I need toeat during the day to feel healthy and energetic and alive?
What kind of exercise is too much during the week that I'm risk of getting injured oroverdoing it?
(09:39):
And what's too little?
And, you know, how much can I read and learn and, and what is the best way to engage with,with the world?
So that was a really wonderful way to layer back in from.
scratch kind of what is a perfect day, morning, week, and month look like for mepersonally with two young kids and a wife who works in finance.
(10:04):
And that was kind of the baseline.
And I realized once I stacked everything together that I still had six to eight hours aday or more where I wanted to just work on hard problems with smart people.
And that's when I started looking and exploring ideas related to.
cities and small businesses and FinTech and real estate and trying to find a new companyto start, which ultimately became Subsidi.
(10:29):
That is wonderful.
Wow.
That's a lot of information.
can tell that your brain is just constantly moving and working.
Yeah, for better or worse.
Yes, yes, yes.
Now know the feeling.
So yeah, you're ahead of me because I was going to come to that transition and you talkeda little bit about that, know, transitioning to Subsidi.
(10:50):
Just to tell our listener, what exactly is subsidy?
What does it do?
Because you know, I was going to ask you about the transition and you kind of did it forme and told us how it happened.
But yes, if you could just explain what exactly is subsidy and how does it help, you know,businesses?
Yeah.
(11:11):
So subsidy, we've digitized about 2000 local, state and federal economic incentives andtax credits.
So whether it's the federal government and a program like the Research and Development TaxCredit to incentivize innovation in the U.S.
or a individual state like Pennsylvania passing a workforce training and development grantand loan program, or a locality saying, if you fix your signage in our downtown corridor,
(11:38):
we will provide a up to $3,000 matching grant for your facade improvement.
There are all these incentives that are in place to help
businesses fix their outer appearance, hire and train employees, buy equipment, invest inreal estate, invest in their communities.
(11:58):
And yet they're mostly buried on municipal websites and PDFs and broken links.
And we realized that if we could catalog and digitize this database of incentives, wecould match it.
to individual businesses based on their address, based on their sector, based on theirhiring profile, based on a whole number of factors.
(12:19):
And so what we built with subsidy is kind of three assets.
There's the database of all the incentives in one place.
We think it's the most comprehensive database of incentives that exists in the U.S.
A matching algorithm to pair companies with the programs they should consider in apersonalized list.
And then an application engine to help streamline the gathering of documents and detailsand
(12:40):
filing in order to actually claim these incentives.
that was really the three areas that we were developing with Subsidi over three years.
We started the company in 2021 and we were acquired by Engineered Tax Services in Augustof 2024.
Wonderful.
So that's great.
(13:02):
So, and that also explained, you know, how you are connected with the Engineered TaxServices.
Before we get more into this, would like to just for our listeners, could you give us anexample of a company that may be one of your most exciting experience seeing how a company
(13:23):
who had no idea or struggled with finding out all the things that were available as far asincentives go, and then you came in and showed them what was available and what was the
outcome of that?
Sure.
I can even share one of those clients was how we actually met ETS and engineer taxservices for the first time.
(13:43):
So it's always a fun one.
This was a real estate developer in Las Vegas who had built hundreds of high efficiency,energy efficiency units doing the right thing in the desert, know, leakage and, and they
had no idea about a program called 45L.
So, which was designed to incentivize builders.
(14:06):
and real estate developers to build energy efficiency condos, multifamily and homes.
And we generated a personalized incentive report for them and walked them through theprograms.
And this one caught their attention because they were building to a energy efficiencystandard and didn't realize that there was an incentive in place for them to do so.
(14:31):
so based on the size, they were very sizable developer.
and number of units they wanted to move forward with certifying hundreds of units for thiscredit.
And so I went, we didn't do that work personally at subsidy, but we have a network ofproviders and referral firms.
So I talked to all the leaders in the marketplace who do energy incentives andcertification and engineering based programs.
(14:54):
And it was most impressed with ETS from a professionalism standpoint, from a fulfillment,from a referral recommendation standpoint, and made the connection.
And
ATS was able to certify nearly a million dollar tax credit for this company.
And that was a perfect example of the win, win, win, win, win for everyone, which is whatis so intoxicating and exciting about the space, even if it's very nerdy and very
(15:23):
technical.
But the idea that the government put in place this incentive to develop hot energyefficiency units and then a private and real estate developer.
didn't know this program existed and was still doing the right thing and that we couldconnect them with that program, with the certification, with the tax credit so that they
(15:43):
can build more units and affordable housing and all the other great developments thatthey're doing is really, really awesome.
So success to us would be helping thousands of small and medium sized business ownersidentify, claim and collect billions of dollars in tax incentives over the next 10 years.
And I really feel like part of ETS has that ecosystem and foundation.
(16:04):
where we can actually achieve that.
So that's just one example.
We work primarily with manufacturers prior to the acquisition.
So a lot of manufacturers who were buying equipment or hiring and retraining andupskilling their workforce or needing to reduce their energy costs and bills through their
(16:25):
utility.
There's lots of examples there.
But for the most part, it just allows these companies
have access to the programs that all the big four and the Fortune 500 have access to, butfor too long, you know, have been kind of shut out of.
That's amazing.
(16:45):
That really is amazing.
And I also really appreciate how professional, clean, clear, and concise those reportsare.
And there is not one email I send these days where I don't, you know, offer this beautifulservice for business owners.
mean, it's
It's a game changer.
can bring so much to any business that doesn't take full advantage of what's available tothem.
(17:11):
And the fact that we are there to help with whatever they find, whatever we do, we willhelp with.
And if we don't do it, we know who does it.
So it's a very tight professional ecosystem.
I really love that.
Yeah.
So now we're calling those reports engineered opportunity reports.
still powered by the subsidy technology and database and matching, but it's just displayedthrough ETS and delivered via our client development directors or CPA partners or
(17:41):
accounting firms.
And really the hard part of this business is not necessarily the matching or the database,even though those are tremendous investments we've made and work that we've been doing.
It's really trying to figure out how do you work with the
finance team, the owners, the CPAs, and that whole financial ecosystem around these realestate investors and these companies in a way that they can all make sure that they're not
(18:07):
leaving money on the table with any of these incentive programs that are out there.
Absolutely.
And I also love that, you know, whatever they do, we don't touch, we're just there tocompliment and to really help serve the client and bring as much value as possible.
That's really amazing.
Exactly.
They don't have to break up with their CPA.
just do as a licensed engineering firm, we can do a lot of the certifications and heavylifting and engineering based studies that, you know, they wouldn't be able to accomplish
(18:36):
on their own.
Definitely, definitely.
So CPAs, advisors, CFOs, please reach out.
We are there to help with all these things.
now with, so
You've kind of answered my next question also, which was, how you found that collaborationwith Internet Tech Services and you did answer that, meaning that, you know, you find the
(19:00):
data and we're there to support, to fulfill and to help things move very smoothly.
And I've been a witness of this, how just smooth the whole process is utilizing all theexpertise, you know, on that at every level.
So how does that compare with maybe how...
you know, from, where you were before to now having just this house full of, you know,tools, like how does that feel?
(19:28):
And that's the state, you know, I don't want to.
No, it's night and day.
really is.
And before we were going, we were, had raised venture capital.
So by definition, we needed to find very high velocity, high growth businessopportunities.
And to us, that was definitely going directly to the business owners themselves.
(19:49):
with a pitch around personalized incentives and tax credit opportunities and lists forthem in their business.
And we even knew from the beginning that that was called, we called it hard mode goingdirect to the business owner because everyone, for better or worse, assumes that their CPA
is on top of all of these programs.
And so, you we would go to the business owner with a pitch of...
(20:12):
economic incentives and tax credits, and they would either forward it to their CPA or justdelete it because they assume that they were covered.
And if it was a legitimate program, they would be flagged by their CPA.
This was also during the height of the employee retention tax credit spam that a lot ofbusiness owners were receiving.
And so we kind of got, I think, caught up and tuned out with some of those pitches therebecause they thought it was just that one program and not the
(20:41):
thousands of other ones that we were tracking and trying to surface.
So what was most exciting to us about the ETS acquisition was over the last two decades,ETS has done the hard thing, which is build up thousands of personal relationships with
CPAs and accounting firms and ecosystem partners around the country, has a stellarreputation, and really is the
(21:08):
distribution channel that we need in order to deliver these opportunity reports tobusinesses, large and small.
rather than going to 10 different business owners with 10 kind of cold outreach pitches,we can go to one CPA and say, let us run an opportunity report for your 10 best clients.
And then we can present them together to that client and help them understand what'savailable.
(21:34):
ETS can fulfill the engineering-based incentives that require specialized expertise.
The CPA might be able to fulfill a couple of those programs.
And then sometimes if it's a small grant or a facade improvement program or a very basicsales and use tax exemption, then the business owner or the CFO or the virtual CFO could
(21:55):
maybe just do those programs directly.
So the expertise and ecosystem and trust and reputation that ETS has
is that kind of missing factor that we didn't have for the three years prior.
Wonderful, wonderful.
And I'm super excited that I arrived at a time where, you know, you were a part of ATS andI could use this.
(22:18):
It's a beautiful tool.
mean, there's not one, you know, person I've talked to and not one CPA that is not superimpressed and really want to see what that's about.
So that's very, very exciting.
So we're getting to the end of this great conversation.
I want to know and let our listeners know how they can reach you.
(22:39):
Like what's the best way to work with you?
What is your preference?
Yes, if they want to know more.
Well, they can always email me.
My name is Alex White.
So my email is a white at engineered tech services.com.
I'm on Twitter.
I'm dotting the notes as well, but yes, you know.
(23:02):
Yeah.
Email is the best.
I'm on Twitter or X at MrAlexWhite.
And I would be happy to talk to anyone about an opportunity report for themselves, ifthey're a business or a individual or their client, if they are a CPA or accounting firm.
Wonderful.
Wonderful.
(23:22):
And then before...
I let you go, what is an industry that you would be interested to find out more about?
Cause I'm still building my list and I'm, you know, that's something that I'm going to askmy guests.
Like what is an industry that you're curious about and would like to know more about?
Yeah.
Well, that's the best part of my job.
I get to meet with business owners and innovators and inventors across all differentcategories and dive into totally different, you know, aerospace and defense manufacturers,
(23:53):
food and beverage.
new consumer products to biotech, software companies, real estate projects of alldifferent shapes and sizes and everything in between.
Most recently, we've been running a lot of reports for biotech companies, specificallycancer related startups across Massachusetts, Texas, California, and a few other states.
(24:22):
And there's some really exciting innovations and grants and dollars available forcompanies like that to get to clinical trials, get through them, you know, and start
scaling.
So that's one industry and sector that I'm specifically excited about, think, biology,synthetic biology, and some of the life science opportunities that exist with the
(24:46):
combination of AI and the latest technology alongside
hospital work and advances we made in medicine are really exciting.
Wonderful.
Well, thank you so much, Alex.
I really appreciate you taking the time to come on the Brave New Wealth podcast to shareyour knowledge and experience with us and your fun journey.
(25:07):
And I'll make sure to put all the notes so that people can reach you and have access toeverything that Subsidi offers as well as engineer tech services.
And I'll see you soon and I will see you all next time.
Great.
I've really been loving the podcast so far.
I'm so glad you're doing it.
It reminds me of the kind of a comfort zone question you asked me earlier and I think it'sjust great for you to learn and have different folks and perspectives and viewpoint on.
(25:36):
And I love that our journey with ETS has followed, you know, similar trajectory and lovedmeeting you last summer in Texas when we first announced the deal and getting to know you
over the months.
past months as coworkers.
Thank you so much, Alex.
All right.
Thank you, everyone.
Thank you.
Thank you very much for listening to this episode of the Brave New Wealth podcast.
(26:01):
I'm always super excited to have the experts coming on to share their expertise andinsights to help the business owner entrepreneur level up their business.
I encourage you to go on YouTube to like and subscribe and write your comments.
If you are a CPA and advisor CFO, reach out and please let us know how we can help you.
(26:26):
I hope I will see you in the next episode.
A bientôt.
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