Salaries

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

22,834 openings with posted pay · 512 companies · Updated Oct 10, 2026

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Sorted by top of posted range

Compute & Semiconductors: median base salary $219k · Typical range $177k–$265k · 2,788 openings with pay.

Compute & Semiconductors

2,788 matching openings with posted pay
1
AI Chip Architect

MatX · Mountain View, CA · Senior

$275k–$600k / year
2
AI Silicon Architect

MatX · Mountain View, CA · Senior

$275k–$600k / year
3
Design Verification Engineer - Compute

MatX · Mountain View, CA · Senior

$250k–$600k / year
4
SOC Integration Engineer

MatX · Mountain View, CA · Senior

$250k–$600k / year
5
Security Engineer

MatX · Mountain View, CA · Senior

$250k–$600k / year
6
Formal Verification Engineer

MatX · Mountain View, CA · Senior

$250k–$600k / year
7
Power Engineer

MatX · Mountain View, CA · Senior

$250k–$600k / year
8
Senior SoC Power Analysis & Optimization Engineer

MatX · Mountain View, CA · Senior

$250k–$600k / year

Median base salary

$177k

All openings with posted pay

Typical range

$134k–$226k

25th to 75th percentile

22,834 openings with pay data across 512 companies · 51% of 44,816 tracked openings. Annual base salary. Equity and bonus excluded. Methodology

Distribution

Share of openings by posted midpoint

Under $50k
231
$50k–$100k
2,703
$100k–$150k
4,497
$150k–$200k
6,576
$200k–$250k
4,800
$250k–$300k
2,281
$300k–$400k
1,390
$400k+
356

By role

Bar shows 25th to 75th percentile

AI & Autonomy1,230 openings
Typical range $183k–$280k
$231k
Software & Data5,258 openings
Typical range $165k–$255k
$209k
Typical range $160k–$253k
$203k
Typical range $160k–$230k
$193k
Marketing & Design761 openings
Typical range $150k–$220k
$180k
Typical range $130k–$240k
$180k
Electrical & Firmware1,713 openings
Typical range $139k–$218k
$175k
Typical range $128k–$228k
$170k
Typical range $124k–$183k
$158k
Typical range $112k–$185k
$148k
Typical range $99k–$177k
$142k
Typical range $100k–$170k
$138k
Typical range $73k–$149k
$105k

By experience level

Intern764 openings
Typical range $60k–$95k
$71k
Entry-Level2,021 openings
Typical range $71k–$155k
$108k
Mid-Level6,239 openings
Typical range $115k–$195k
$150k
Senior8,977 openings
Typical range $160k–$230k
$193k
Staff / Principal1,941 openings
Typical range $193k–$270k
$228k
Manager1,867 openings
Typical range $148k–$236k
$187k
Director949 openings
Typical range $215k–$294k
$248k
Executive76 openings
Typical range $260k–$317k
$294k

By funding stage

Seed524 openings
Typical range $123k–$188k
$157k
Series A1,343 openings
Typical range $126k–$200k
$163k
Series B1,556 openings
Typical range $133k–$225k
$176k
Series C+14,625 openings
Typical range $142k–$235k
$185k
Public4,736 openings
Typical range $115k–$220k
$165k

By sector

AI Research1,773 openings
Typical range $215k–$352k
$278k
Typical range $177k–$265k
$219k
AI App3,250 openings
Typical range $170k–$260k
$214k
Fintech830 openings
Typical range $143k–$245k
$193k
Robotics621 openings
Typical range $128k–$210k
$175k
Public Services141 openings
Typical range $136k–$225k
$171k
Defense3,581 openings
Typical range $143k–$208k
$170k
Typical range $135k–$215k
$170k
Bio & Health483 openings
Typical range $128k–$219k
$168k
Supply Chain254 openings
Typical range $112k–$212k
$162k
Agriculture155 openings
Typical range $115k–$168k
$158k
Energy & Climate1,626 openings
Typical range $120k–$188k
$157k
Transportation1,664 openings
Typical range $94k–$215k
$153k
Aerospace4,752 openings
Typical range $107k–$180k
$145k
Manufacturing763 openings
Typical range $90k–$176k
$135k
Education39 openings
Typical range $80k–$175k
$123k

Top-paying companies

Median pay · 8+ openings each

1Anthropic374 roles$363k
2Aaru19 roles$353k
3Thinking Machines Lab35 roles$330k
4OpenAI653 roles$308k
5Normal Computing17 roles$300k
6Goodfire12 roles$300k
7World Labs11 roles$288k
8MatX44 roles$288k
9Luma AI15 roles$288k
10Lambda88 roles$287k
11Wispr Flow30 roles$285k
12Wayve56 roles$284k
13Periodic Labs26 roles$281k
14Oxide15 roles$275k
15Generalist AI10 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 51% 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 $177k per year, across 22,834 live openings at 512 companies. The middle half of postings falls between $134k and $226k.
Which startup roles pay the most?
AI & Autonomy roles lead at a $231k median, followed by Software & Data ($209k) and Infrastructure, IT, & Security ($203k), based on the ranges companies post on live openings.
Which companies building the future pay the highest salaries?
Anthropic tops the list with a $363k median posted base salary, ahead of Aaru ($353k) and Thinking Machines Lab ($330k), among companies with eight or more openings that post pay.
Do startup job postings include salary?
About 51% 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 22,834 live openings. Browse the roles behind them.