OpenAI Sets Record for Employee Stock Pay, Surpassing Every Major Tech Startup

OpenAI is paying employees more than any major tech startup in history, with average stock-based compensation reaching about $1.5 million per worker in 2025, according to data reported by The Wall Street Journal.

The Journal reported that the average stock compensation is more than seven times higher than what Google disclosed in 2003, the year before it filed for an initial public offering in 2004. The figure is also approximately 34 times the average employee compensation of 18 other large tech companies in the year preceding their initial public offering.

Surging AI Talent Competition

OpenAI has increased stock compensation as it works to maintain its position in the AI race. The company has offered large equity packages to researchers and engineers, making them among the highest-paid employees in Silicon Valley. These awards have contributed to higher operating losses and faster dilution for existing shareholders.

The push to raise pay accelerated over the summer as competition intensified among AI developers. Rival firms, including Meta Platforms, increased compensation offers after Chief Executive Mark Zuckerberg began offering pay packages worth hundreds of millions of dollars, and in rare cases up to $1 billion, to top executives and researchers.

Zuckerberg’s recruitment effort drew more than 20 OpenAI employees, including ChatGPT co-creator Shengjia Zhao. In August, OpenAI awarded one-time bonuses to some research and engineering staff, with certain employees receiving payouts worth millions of dollars, the Journal previously reported.

Policy Changes

Financial information shared with investors over the summer showed OpenAI’s stock-based compensation is expected to rise by roughly $3 billion per year through 2030. The company also recently told employees it would end a policy requiring staff to work at OpenAI for at least six months before their equity begins to vest, a change that could further increase compensation levels.

OpenAI’s stock compensation was projected to equal 46% of its revenue in 2025. Among the 18 tech companies analyzed by the Journal, only Rivian recorded a higher ratio, and that was in a year when it generated no revenue ahead of its IPO.

For comparison, Palantir reported stock compensation equal to 33% of revenue before its 2020 IPO, while Google and Facebook reported levels of 15% and 6%, respectively. Across the companies reviewed, stock-based compensation averaged approximately 6% of revenue in the year preceding their initial public offering, based on data from Equilar.