Qualifying expenditure can include the following when it relates to a qualified research activity:
Employees or sub-consultants performing research
Raw materials
Consumable supplies during development
Cloud computing services related to development operations
A start-up business in the US can also qualify to offset payroll taxes if each of the following criteria is met:
5 years or less in revenue
Less than $5 million in revenue in the current year
Conducted qualifying research activities and expenditures