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Nope, they took on less risk than anyone else involved. Money is fungible, and they've likely got a lot of it.

The people there, day after day, they gave their time. That's something we all only have a limited amount of, and that's something you'll never get back.

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They did not "give away" their time; they were compensated at a fair market value for their time. I believe this is what we call "employment."

If it was a fair salary. A lot of places try to pay low and give shares for payout in the future. Many young and techie people go for that if they are enthusiastic about the idea.

At a fair market value -- except if it was an early stage startup it was discounted from market value, with subpar benefits, but with a "tonne" of (now worthless) equity.

It is in many ways personally more rewarding, but taking a job in a startup versus a well-established business is taking a risk, accepting subpar conditions today for a shot at a big prize later on.

The company has been around for 10 years, with hundreds of millions in funding through multiple rounds, so I would not consider this a "startup".

The employees were/are highly paid and not assuming any real risk.

While philosophically time is invaluable, I bet people would rather spend their time earning money if they don't have other options.

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