Hi there, I am developing a new product that has significant costs to it (~10k per unit). I am hoping to get some early adopters to pre-order a unit for 5k to help cover some of the costs. In exchange I will give them a unit for the 5k (a steep discount from the 15k I will be listing them for). IF the product does not work out, can the companies claim this as an expense or loss so it does not harm them as much? Or does anyone have suggestions how to approach this?

Thanks in advance.

Mike