> In other words, there is no way for a startup to pay a top 1% developer (but perhaps they can offer some other incentive, and I don’t mean stock options becau

> In other words, there is no way for a startup to pay a top 1% developer (but perhaps they can offer some other incentive, and I don’t mean stock options because that’s crap). Who's to say wage is a good measure of talent? I would say circumstance can play a bigger role in setting the wage, more so than actual talent. For example, a developer working for a company over a long period of time will always creep up the wage scale, a developer with lots of keyword hits on the resume for the latest and greatest framework can always demand a higher pay, niche software skills always pay well, a developer who began work with a startup that then gets bought out by a multi-notational probably hits the jackpot etc. etc.