One thing that gets lost in spaces like this is that there are plenty of essentially non "tech" companies that have large technical aspects to their core business but still lie outside the realm of what would traditionally be considered a pure "tech" company, such as most tech startups would be. One area that immediately comes to mind from past experience is banking/finance/insurance and ecommerce. I don't think the roles or the paybands are as flashy, but they can be extraordinarily stable and more of a "normal" work experience than your typical 'up and coming' startup. I've only had one small startup experience so far and I would consider all my other roles at non-tech companies much more stable and enjoyable than that one was, which wanted me to sell my soul for a very speculative goal, for what now I would consider pennies for the effort spent.