Robo, Brokerage IRA, or Subscription Retirement App: Where 1099 Income Fits

Three tools, three different jobs

When a self-employed prospect asks an adviser where to open a retirement account, the honest answer depends on what the prospect's actual problem is. There are three broad categories of tool, and each solves a different problem well.

• •Robo-advisers solve the portfolio problem: low-cost diversified management with automatic rebalancing.
• •Brokerage IRAs solve the access problem: an account, a funding link, and a trading interface, at very low cost.
• •Subscription retirement apps built for 1099 income solve the contribution problem: how much can this person put in, into which account, by when, given income that is not a salary.

Most advisers are fluent in the first two. The third is newer, and it is the category the Gigaverse adviser partner program falls into. This article compares the three fairly, so that a referral is a fit rather than a default.

The robo-adviser

Wealthfront's S-1, filed in 2025, reported roughly 1.3 million clients and $88 billion in assets as of December 2025 (https://finovate.com/wealthfront-files-s-1-targeting-2-billion-ipo), and Betterment is of comparable scale. These are mature, well-run products with a fee structure expressed as a percentage of assets, which is transparent and appropriate for the job they do.

Where 1099 income fits: well, once the money is in the account. A robo will hold a Roth IRA, a traditional IRA, and in some cases a SEP, and manage it competently.

Where it does not: the step before the money arrives. A robo does not know the client's Schedule C, does not compute the SE-tax adjustment, does not tell a client netting $150,000 that a Solo 401(k) allows roughly $52,400 while a SEP allows about $27,900, and does not chase the December 31 deferral election. Some robos do not offer a Solo 401(k) at all.

The brokerage IRA

A discount brokerage will open a Roth IRA, a traditional IRA, a SEP, or a Solo 401(k) with no advisory fee and, for the Solo 401(k), a free prototype plan document. Alpaca extended IRAs to its API developers on May 13, 2026 (https://alpaca.markets/blog/alpaca-introduces-individual-retirement-accounts-for-trading-api-users), so the account layer is now available inside third-party apps as well.

Where 1099 income fits: cheaply. For a disciplined client with a good CPA, a brokerage Solo 401(k) is often the lowest-cost route to the full $72,000 of 2026 contribution room.

Where it does not: the brokerage does not tell the client what the room is. The interface asks "how much would you like to contribute?" and accepts whatever the client types, up to a hard limit the brokerage may or may not enforce correctly for a sole proprietor. Under-contribution is common; over-contribution happens when a client computes 25 percent of gross instead of 20 percent of adjusted net. Neither is the brokerage's job.

The subscription retirement app

A subscription app for 1099 workers starts with the contribution problem. The user enters income and expenses as the year goes, the app computes net earnings, self-employment tax, and the resulting limits, tracks contributions against those limits, flags the deadlines, and hands a summary to the preparer. The account itself sits at a broker-dealer.

Where 1099 income fits: this is the tool built for it. A driver logging miles at the 2026 rates ($0.725 per mile January through June, $0.76 July through December), a consultant with lumpy quarterly invoices, or a contract physician with three 1099s all have the same problem: the contribution limit depends on a number they do not know until January.

Where it does not: portfolio sophistication. A subscription app is not a substitute for tax-loss harvesting across a taxable account, a concentrated-stock plan, or estate work. When the client has those problems, they have crossed into your practice.

What Gigaverse specifically offers today: a Roth IRA at a FINRA/SIPC-member broker-dealer, the contribution engine, tracking, and the CPA hand-off. Applications for a Solo 401(k) and a SEP IRA are open at gigaverse.ai/solo-401k and gigaverse.ai/sep-ira: you apply, a person confirms your eligibility and sends your plan documents, then you fund before the deadline. It also provides the math and tracking. It is pursuing SEC RIA registration and does not give personalized investment advice until that is approved.

A decision rule for referrals

• •Client has accumulated assets and wants them managed cheaply; contributions are simple. Robo.
• •Client is disciplined, has a strong CPA, and wants the lowest cost. Brokerage Solo 401(k).
• •Client's income is variable, the CPA relationship is thin, and the risk is under-contributing or missing the December 31 election. Subscription app.
• •Client has all three problems. Subscription app now; your practice in a few years.

The compensation question, answered before the client asks

Advisers can be paid for referrals in two of these three categories, and the structure differs.

Robo and brokerage referral programs are typically run through the firm's own solicitor or affiliate arrangements and are subject to the same Marketing Rule requirements as any other. Check the specific program's current terms.

Gigaverse pays advisers in exactly two ways: a share of revenue on paid app subscriptions, or a flat per-seat licence fee if the firm buys seats for clients. It never pays per account opened, per deposit, or as a percentage of assets, because payments tied to accounts or deposits resemble transaction-based compensation under Exchange Act Section 15(a) and FINRA Rule 2040, and an SEC-registered adviser cannot share advisory fees with unregistered parties. Any compensated adviser signs a written agreement under SEC Marketing Rule 206(4)-1, delivers the promoter disclosure, and must disclose the conflict of interest to the referred client. Some states require paid solicitors of advisory clients to register as investment adviser representatives. The client-facing version is the how we make money page.

The 2027 wrinkle that affects all three

Beginning January 1, 2027, the federal Saver's Match pays up to $1,000 into a non-Roth IRA for qualifying contributions, including Roth contributions, for filers under the MAGI phase-outs ($20,500 to $35,500 single, $30,750 to $53,250 head of household, $41,000 to $71,000 joint). A lower-income 1099 client using any of the three tools will need a non-Roth IRA to receive it. The rule is on the Saver's Match Roth rule page, and the free tools estimate eligibility.

Where Gigaverse fits

Gigaverse is the subscription-app option in the comparison above: a retirement app for 1099 workers that today offers a Roth IRA through a FINRA/SIPC-member broker-dealer, computes contribution limits from self-employment income, tracks deadlines, and hands the numbers to a CPA. Solo 401(k) and SEP IRA applications are open now. It is pursuing SEC RIA registration and does not guarantee returns. Adviser partners are paid only a share of subscription revenue or a flat per-seat licence and must disclose the conflict. The referral terms are on the adviser partner page.