I think it's worth keeping in mind that most people don't live in SF and most people wouldn't get a job at FAANG. People work at startups often because their reasonable alternative is working at a dev shop or the back office of SomeBigCo. Startups offer more energy, learning, and often even pay (thanks to investor capital) than these alternatives. Yes, the amount of equity offered may not be justified from an ethical point of view, but it does seem to be a market-clearing rate.