Originally published on AI Tech Connect.
What you need to decide There are four archetypes, not two. The usual "startup versus Big Tech" framing is too coarse. The real choices for an AI engineer are an early-stage startup, a growth-stage scale-up, Big Tech (including India GCCs and global majors), and a frontier AI lab. Each optimises a different variable. Compensation is cash, equity and risk — not one number. Big Tech and labs offer the highest reliable cash. Startups trade cash for equity whose value is unknown. Comparing only the headline figure is the most common mistake. Learning rate and scope are inversely correlated with comfort. The more ambiguous and under-resourced the environment, the faster you learn — and the less safe you feel. Decide how much of that you want at your current stage. Brand and optionality…
Top comments (0)