What people use it for and what you can legally use it for without being taxed aren't necessarily the same thing. Regarding the US, please see: http://www.irs.

What people use it for and what you can legally use it for without being taxed aren't necessarily the same thing. Regarding the US, please see: http://www.irs.gov/pub/irs-pdf/p970.pdf http://www.irs.gov/pub/irs-pdf/p970.pdf I quote: "Expenses that do not qualify. Qualified education expenses do not include the cost of: • Room and board, • Travel, • Research, • Clerical help, or • Equipment and other expenses that are not required for enrollment in or attendance at an eligible educational institution" Any expenses used toward a drone are clearly taxable even if you call it "Research". In practice, the IRS would never find out (unless you were audited). Unless, that is, you went and posted your idea on your blog and then posted that on HN.