Working without a salary, pre angel funding = co-founder You should be giving them 20%+ equity. If you treat them like employees, they will act like employees.

Working without a salary, pre angel funding = co-founder You should be giving them 20%+ equity. If you treat them like employees, they will act like employees. At this early stage in the startup you need dedicated fanatics who will obsess about the project 24/7 and work 70 hours a week. With 5-10% equity, it's not rational for them to do so.