There are valid points here. Most people would agree reward should be commensurate with risk taken. But imagine a simple case of two contributors. Person A's co

There are valid points here. Most people would agree reward should be commensurate with risk taken. But imagine a simple case of two contributors. Person A's contribution in absolute terms is far more significant than Person B's. But Person B's contribution as a percentage of Person B's available resources (so to speak) is much more significant than Person A's percentage of Person A's available resources. I think most people would still think that it's fair to base rewards on absolute contribution. But I think the author's point is that's not the only option available and not what she would propose. I have no issues there. More generally, the point about startups - and the limited liability company vehicle itself - working to the advantage of those who already have resources is true, but there's more to it. Why it's true: If there were no limited liability company form and you had to contract for your liability to be limited at the amount of your investment, you would have to give up concessions to creditors. With a corporate form statutorily available, you needn't give up such concessions. Who is best positioned to take advantage of this? People who already have resources. So people who already have resources effectively receive a wealth transfer courtesy of the law. This is the equity version of the saying about debt - that interest is society's way of thanking the rich for being rich. That said, I view this is as tolerable because the system enables the least well-off to take risks they otherwise never would be able to afford. That benefits everyone, especially them. The real problem (if there is one, and in my view there definitely is, but I appreciate not everyone here agrees) is vastly unequal distribution in the first place, but I view that as a separable issue (one fwiw I would want to address by redistribution of wealth, not in how we divide up corporate equity).