I can corroborate. Career level just means you won't get fired if you stop advancing. There are plenty of people who still pursue L6 though out of pride though.

I can corroborate. Career level just means you won't get fired if you stop advancing. There are plenty of people who still pursue L6 though out of pride though. It's extremely difficult for an experienced SDE to get hired on at L6 level too, so most have to work up to it.