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Salaries

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

19,555 openings with posted pay · 460 companies · Updated Sep 10, 2026

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Sorted by top of posted range

Supply Chain & Procurement in Defense: median base salary $165k · Typical range $131k–$185k · 176 openings with pay.

Supply Chain & Procurement · Defense

176 matching openings with posted pay
1
Principal Global Sourcing Manager, Battery Pack (High Voltage Systems)

Anduril Industries · Costa Mesa, CA · Staff / Principal

$253k–$336k / year
2
Head of Sensors & Radar Strategic Supply Chain

Anduril Industries · Costa Mesa, CA · Director

$253k–$336k / year
3
Director, Product Sourcing Engineering (Electronics)

Anduril Industries · Costa Mesa, CA · Director

$220k–$292k / year
4
Director, Product Sourcing Engineering (Electrical)

Anduril Industries · Costa Mesa, CA · Director

$220k–$292k / year
5
Director of Supplier Industrialization Engineering

Anduril Industries · Costa Mesa, CA · Director

$220k–$292k / year
6
Director of Product Sourcing Engineering, AD&S

Anduril Industries · Costa Mesa, CA · Director

$220k–$292k / year
7
Director, Global Supply Management - Mechanicals

Skydio · San Mateo, CA · Director

$184k–$262k / year
8
Staff Supplier Development Engineer - Propulsion & Landing Gear (R5859)

Shield AI · Seattle, WA · Staff / Principal

$170k–$260k / year

Median base salary

$176k

All openings with posted pay

Typical range

$134k–$225k

25th to 75th percentile

19,555 openings with pay data across 460 companies · 47% of 41,638 tracked openings. Annual base salary. Equity and bonus excluded. Methodology

Distribution

Share of openings by posted midpoint

Under $50k
207
$50k–$100k
2,191
$100k–$150k
4,066
$150k–$200k
5,666
$200k–$250k
4,026
$250k–$300k
1,945
$300k–$400k
1,220
$400k+
234

By role

Bar shows 25th to 75th percentile

AI & Autonomy953 openings
Typical range $180k–$281k
$225k
Software & Data5,176 openings
Typical range $163k–$250k
$203k
Infrastructure, IT, & Security1,453 openings
Typical range $148k–$250k
$198k
Product, Programs, & Systems1,686 openings
Typical range $158k–$240k
$195k
Marketing & Design527 openings
Typical range $155k–$230k
$188k
Business Development & Customer Ops1,779 openings
Typical range $138k–$255k
$188k
Electrical & Firmware1,456 openings
Typical range $147k–$213k
$175k
Finance, Legal, & Compliance831 openings
Typical range $128k–$228k
$170k
Mechanical & Physical Systems1,354 openings
Typical range $125k–$185k
$156k
Business & People Operations870 openings
Typical range $110k–$183k
$145k
Test, Quality, & Reliability1,417 openings
Typical range $100k–$175k
$140k
Supply Chain & Procurement628 openings
Typical range $104k–$170k
$138k
Manufacturing & Production1,425 openings
Typical range $73k–$145k
$104k

By experience level

Intern372 openings
Typical range $62k–$95k
$73k
Entry-Level2,046 openings
Typical range $73k–$165k
$113k
Mid-Level5,708 openings
Typical range $118k–$195k
$150k
Senior7,702 openings
Typical range $160k–$233k
$193k
Staff / Principal1,449 openings
Typical range $193k–$263k
$225k
Manager1,470 openings
Typical range $145k–$234k
$184k
Director740 openings
Typical range $215k–$298k
$250k
Executive68 openings
Typical range $255k–$317k
$289k

By funding stage

Seed423 openings
Typical range $123k–$188k
$155k
Series A1,315 openings
Typical range $125k–$195k
$160k
Series B1,128 openings
Typical range $138k–$213k
$175k
Series C+11,946 openings
Typical range $143k–$235k
$185k
Public4,714 openings
Typical range $115k–$220k
$166k

By sector

AI Research1,470 openings
Typical range $214k–$348k
$280k
Compute & Semiconductors2,713 openings
Typical range $177k–$261k
$220k
AI App2,510 openings
Typical range $179k–$264k
$216k
Fintech511 openings
Typical range $153k–$253k
$204k
Robotics596 openings
Typical range $125k–$209k
$175k
Defense2,590 openings
Typical range $140k–$204k
$170k
Construction & Housing114 openings
Typical range $135k–$215k
$170k
Public Services137 openings
Typical range $140k–$225k
$165k
Agriculture171 openings
Typical range $115k–$175k
$165k
Energy & Climate1,410 openings
Typical range $120k–$189k
$155k
Bio & Health420 openings
Typical range $111k–$210k
$155k
Transportation1,605 openings
Typical range $93k–$210k
$150k
Aerospace4,424 openings
Typical range $112k–$179k
$147k
Manufacturing689 openings
Typical range $103k–$181k
$139k
Supply Chain155 openings
Typical range $80k–$171k
$127k
Education40 openings
Typical range $77k–$165k
$111k

Top-paying companies

Median pay · 8+ openings each

1Thinking Machines Lab21 roles$388k
2Magic8 roles$388k
3Anthropic219 roles$345k
4OpenAI661 roles$309k
5Normal Computing22 roles$300k
6Polymarket53 roles$295k
7Pika9 roles$293k
8Goodfire17 roles$288k
9Wayve69 roles$286k
10Wispr Flow22 roles$280k
11Lambda83 roles$276k
12Luma AI21 roles$275k
13Generalist AI12 roles$275k
14Dataminr12 roles$273k
15Gimlet Labs11 roles$270k

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 47% 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 $176k per year, across 19,555 live openings at 460 companies. The middle half of postings falls between $134k and $225k.
Which startup roles pay the most?
AI & Autonomy roles lead at a $225k median, followed by Software & Data ($203k) and Infrastructure, IT, & Security ($198k), based on the ranges companies post on live openings.
Which companies building the future pay the highest salaries?
Thinking Machines Lab tops the list with a $388k median posted base salary, ahead of Magic ($388k) and Anthropic ($345k), among companies with eight or more openings that post pay.
Do startup job postings include salary?
About 47% 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 19,555 live openings. Browse the roles behind them.

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