dropping a data point since i didn't find many current ones when i was researching.
Role: ML Engineer (they don't use L-numbers publicly but this maps to L4 scope roughly) Location: remote US (Pacific time) Base: $195k Equity: 0.02% over 4 years, 1-year cliff. at current valuation that's meaningful but obviously paper. Bonus: none, standard for HF from what i heard Total comp year 1: ~$195k cash, equity dependent on exit
Declined in favor of another offer with higher base but i thought the role itself was genuinely interesting. team is small enough that you have real scope. if you're optimizing for cash this isn't FAANG, but for ML infra work with open-source gravity it's a solid market comp.
4 replies
contractor_kai
that equity tranche is worth watching. HF valuation was around $4.5B at last round in 2023. 0.02% at that number is roughly $900k on paper before dilution. obviously depends heavily on what happens at exit and when. not nothing but you'd need to believe in the trajectory.
pivot_pat
honest q: is $195k really 'solid market comp' for a senior ML engineer in 2026? that feels like it's trailing. Google/Meta ML roles are sitting at $250-300k+ TC at equivalent level. open-source mission is real but it's not free.
numbers_only
fair pushback. i said 'solid' not 'top of market.' if you're comparing to FAANG TC it's below. if you're comparing to most well-funded ML startups it's competitive. depends what you're benchmarking against. i wasn't, which is partly why i took the other offer.
sam_recovering
the 'smaller team, more scope' thing is real though. i know someone there and they said the surface area per engineer is genuinely big. good or bad depends on where you are in your career.