Tip for founders - if you're hiring AI engineering talent right now, be prepared to pay exorbitant equity packages.
Data below shows the change in the average comp package for AI devs since January 2024.
Over the last 18 months:
Average salaries for AI eng are up 9% (nearly 3x the average increase for other roles)
Average equity packages have risen 26% (!)
You may be saying, "ya, ya, I read the headlines about the offers to Meta AI talent, this seems obvious". And in a way, you're right.
But this level of compensation shift at startups (the analysis only includes companies worth $10M-$100M in post-money valuation) is basically unprecedented. We just don't see comp move this fast, ever.
So what happens now? Couple possibilities:
AI dev talent continues to drive white-hot demand, pushing equity packages to ever-greater heights (and probably pushing other roles' equity down, btw)
As startups remain leaner for longer, the equity pool is redistributed amongst the smaller team meaning employees get a bigger slice of equity individually. Haven't seen this yet, outside of this AI eng change.
We hear a pop and the market deflates.
Comp is (usually) a function of supply and demand. Looks like right now there's an insatiable demand for AI SWEs and that means the leverage has swung to the candidates.
#startups #compensation #AIsalary #AIequity #founders
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