Tech companies are famed for padding their six-figure jobs with flashy perks: lavish retreats, unlimited PTO, and offices outfitted with slides and sleep pods. One AI start-up, Rilla, is even helping foot the bill of its workers’ biggest expense: housing.
The company splashes out $1.7 million annually in housing stipends. And it’s part of a wider incentive designed for employees to make the most of their 72-hours workweeks in the New York City office.
“We’re not trying to coddle people,” CEO Sebastian Jimenez recently told Business Insider. “A lot of companies offer perks that end up distracting employees. We ask ourselves, ‘Can this help someone get into the flow?’”
“That’s why we pay for three meals a day. It’s why we’re building a gym with a sauna and cold plunge,” he continued. “And it’s why we offer employees an $18,000 annual housing stipend if they choose to live within about a 10-minute bike ride of the office.”
An $18K housing stipend if they live near the Williamsburg office where studios rent for $4K
