IMO, it's just good positioning (as in market positioning) for getting hired through an alternative process, with a higher (presumably) payoff. You prove you c

IMO, it's just good positioning (as in market positioning) for getting hired through an alternative process, with a higher (presumably) payoff. You prove you can build the prototype, de-risking the hirer's decision to pay you more than a normal hire. This reasoning presumes that the 'normal' hiring process and market resembles a lemon market. This is my IMHO. Bad hires drag down all participant's perceived value and compensation.