Working at a Startup vs in Big Tech - The Pragmatic Engineer

A software engineer I worked in the same team with at Uber has gone back-and-forth between startups and large companies. Willem Spruijt shares the good, the bad and the ugly, about both environments.

Before we start: I'm hosting the first-ever The Pragmatic Summit on 11 February, 2026, in San Francisco. Join 400 top engineers and leaders as we answer the question: How is AI reshaping software engineering, dev workflows, and the modern engineering stack? Spaces are limited - don't miss out! Buy tickets here . --> 👋 Hi, this is Gergely with a bonus, free issue of the Pragmatic Engineer Newsletter. We cover one out of four topics in today’s subscriber-only The Pulse issue . To get full newsletters twice a week, subscribe here . Willem Spruijt is a software engineer whom I worked on the same

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