> You call it your product? Did you meet with the customers? Did you build it in a complete vacuum? Is it completely unrelated to anything anyone else in the company was building? Did you pay your own salary?

I don't wish to be argumentative about this, but the answer to all of those questions except 'did you pay your own salary' is yes. I know quite well it's not my product in the sense that I own it; my legal ownership is that of my equity stake and no more. But in the "I made this" sense, yeah, I do feel just fine calling it my product.

> don't try to ruin it for everyone as your negotiating tactic. Why would you want to do that?

I don't want to do that. That's exactly why I'm asking this question. I am very much aware that if I don't like the deal and walk, I am free to do that, and I am equally aware that if I do that everyone loses: me, the founders, the angels, and the other employees.

I've been in successful startups and I've been in failed startups. Back-up plans are not a concern, I could walk and be just fine, personally. But I've never been in an acquisition before, and never in such a prominent role -- so I'm trying to get a sense of what expectations are reasonable and what aren't so that I don't accidentally screw everyone over by expecting too much, or get taken advantage of / end up in an unhappy situation by expecting too little.