Salaries

What companies building the future pay, straight from their own job postings.

19,191 openings with posted pay · 492 companies · Updated Sep 17, 2026

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Sorted by top of posted range

Aaru: median base salary $353k · Typical range $345k$400k · 18 openings with pay.

aaru

18 matching openings with posted pay
1
Engineer, Infrastructure

Aaru · New York, NY · Mid-Level

$250k–$800k / year
2
Data Engineer

Aaru · New York, NY · Mid-Level

$200k–$600k / year
3
Researcher, Evaluation

Aaru · New York, NY · Mid-Level

$200k–$600k / year
4
Engineer, Platform

Aaru · New York, NY · Mid-Level

$200k–$600k / year
5
Engineer, Simulation

Aaru · New York, NY · Mid-Level

$200k–$600k / year
6
Engineer, Product

Aaru · New York, NY · Mid-Level

$200k–$600k / year
7
Researcher, Prediction

Aaru · New York, NY · Mid-Level

$200k–$600k / year
8
Researcher, Population Simulation

Aaru · New York, NY · Mid-Level

$200k–$600k / year

Median base salary

$180k

All openings with posted pay

Typical range

$138k–$230k

25th to 75th percentile

19,191 openings with pay data across 492 companies · 45% of 42,852 tracked openings. Annual base salary. Equity and bonus excluded. Methodology

Distribution

Share of openings by posted midpoint

Under $50k
170
$50k–$100k
1,977
$100k–$150k
3,814
$150k–$200k
5,495
$200k–$250k
4,173
$250k–$300k
1,986
$300k–$400k
1,247
$400k+
329

By role

Bar shows 25th to 75th percentile

AI & Autonomy976 openings
Typical range $190k$283k
$235k
Typical range $158k$255k
$205k
Software & Data5,808 openings
Typical range $160k$250k
$201k
Typical range $160k$235k
$193k
Typical range $138k$250k
$188k
Marketing & Design564 openings
Typical range $154k$220k
$184k
Electrical & Firmware1,261 openings
Typical range $145k$216k
$177k
Typical range $120k$223k
$165k
Typical range $126k$185k
$156k
Typical range $115k$184k
$149k
Typical range $110k$183k
$147k
Typical range $108k$172k
$146k
Typical range $73k$148k
$109k

By experience level

Intern419 openings
Typical range $60k$87k
$69k
Entry-Level1,980 openings
Typical range $83k$185k
$126k
Mid-Level5,781 openings
Typical range $123k$200k
$155k
Senior7,451 openings
Typical range $160k$235k
$194k
Staff / Principal1,450 openings
Typical range $198k$275k
$232k
Manager1,365 openings
Typical range $150k$236k
$188k
Director676 openings
Typical range $215k$295k
$250k
Executive69 openings
Typical range $260k$317k
$293k

By funding stage

Seed438 openings
Typical range $123k$188k
$155k
Series A1,242 openings
Typical range $125k$198k
$160k
Series B1,195 openings
Typical range $138k$225k
$180k
Series C+12,402 openings
Typical range $145k$238k
$188k
Public3,877 openings
Typical range $127k$226k
$173k

By sector

AI Research1,600 openings
Typical range $214k$356k
$281k
Typical range $177k$261k
$218k
AI App2,862 openings
Typical range $172k$260k
$216k
Fintech668 openings
Typical range $146k$249k
$198k
Transportation1,107 openings
Typical range $124k$232k
$177k
Robotics534 openings
Typical range $120k$208k
$170k
Public Services149 openings
Typical range $143k$213k
$170k
Defense2,601 openings
Typical range $145k$210k
$170k
Typical range $135k$215k
$169k
Agriculture164 openings
Typical range $115k$170k
$165k
Bio & Health420 openings
Typical range $124k$216k
$161k
Energy & Climate1,416 openings
Typical range $120k$189k
$155k
Supply Chain240 openings
Typical range $103k$212k
$147k
Aerospace4,033 openings
Typical range $109k$180k
$147k
Manufacturing660 openings
Typical range $101k$181k
$138k
Education40 openings
Typical range $77k$165k
$106k

Top-paying companies

Median pay · 8+ openings each

1Anthropic266 roles$374k
2Thinking Machines Lab18 roles$353k
3Aaru18 roles$353k
4OpenAI675 roles$308k
5Periodic Labs8 roles$300k
6Normal Computing20 roles$300k
7Goodfire13 roles$300k
8Polymarket55 roles$295k
9World Labs8 roles$294k
10Pika9 roles$293k
11Wayve71 roles$286k
12Wispr Flow30 roles$285k
13Lambda89 roles$280k
14Oxide12 roles$275k
15Generalist AI12 roles$275k

Methodology

All figures come from salary ranges companies publish on their own job postings, pulled from their applicant tracking systems hourly. Nothing is self-reported or estimated.

Pay in other currencies is converted at fixed recent exchange rates. Hourly, weekly, and monthly pay is annualized. Everything is base salary only. Equity and bonus are excluded because postings rarely quantify them.

Stats are medians and quartiles of each posting's range midpoint, weighted by open roles. Groups with fewer than 30 openings (8 for a single company) are not shown.

Numbers reflect currently open roles, not historical offers. About 45% of tracked openings post pay. US pay-transparency laws drive most disclosure, so coverage skews to US roles. Explore hiring patterns in the hiring report.

Frequently asked questions

What is the median salary at companies building the future?
The median posted base salary is $180k per year, across 19,191 live openings at 492 companies. The middle half of postings falls between $138k and $230k.
Which startup roles pay the most?
AI & Autonomy roles lead at a $235k median, followed by Infrastructure, IT, & Security ($205k) and Software & Data ($201k), based on the ranges companies post on live openings.
Which companies building the future pay the highest salaries?
Anthropic tops the list with a $374k median posted base salary, ahead of Thinking Machines Lab ($353k) and Aaru ($353k), among companies with eight or more openings that post pay.
Do startup job postings include salary?
About 45% of the openings BuildList tracks post a pay range. Disclosure is highest at US companies covered by pay-transparency laws, so coverage skews to US roles.
Where does this salary data come from?
From the pay ranges companies publish on their own job postings, pulled hourly from their applicant tracking systems and normalized to annual base salary. Equity and bonus are excluded. Nothing is self-reported or estimated.

These numbers come from 19,191 live openings. Browse the roles behind them.