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
Most metropolitan workers would love to cut their commute to just 10 minutes a day, but most apartments within a stone’s throw of hubs like Wall Street and Midtown come with a hefty price tag.
So once Rilla ballooned to 120 staffers, it signed a 10-year lease for its new home base, offering a $18,000 annual housing stipend if employees live within spitting distance of the Williamsburg office. And it’s a much-needed lift to square the trendy Brooklyn area’s average studio rent of $4,000 monthly.
Around 80% of Rilla’s workers use the housing stipend, which is optional. The CEO hopes that removing the friction of distance and inconvenience will lead to “more time in flow” at the company, which creates coaching software for in-person sales teams.
“Commuting is one of the most annoying parts of people’s day. If someone works 12 hours, sleeps eight hours, and works out for an hour, they don’t have much free time left,” Jimenez said. “I’d rather they spend that time with family, reading, or doing something meaningful than sitting on a subway.
It’s just one of the perks the multimillion-dollar business is offering for employees to thrive while working a 12-hour, six-day workweek.
Rilla declined Fortune’s request for comment.
Other special perks Rilla offers to navigate 72-hour workweeks
Rilla has an “insanely hardcore culture,” Rilla reveals: employees come into the office 12 hours a day, six days a week. The CEO says that the talent he hires—like Division I athletes, entrepreneurs, and high achievers—are naturally attuned to that intense environment. And the sales AI start-up is going the extra mile to ensure its employees operate at peak performance.
The CEO hired Dr. Joe Allen, a Harvard University professor and leading expert on healthy buildings, to help pick a NYC office with the best ventilation to improve cognitive performance. Additionally, Rilla pays for the breakfast, lunch, and dinner of his employees; is installing a gym, sauna, and cold plunge into its office; and offers traditional perks like fitness, healthcare, and retirement benefits.
Rilla forks over about $37,000 per employee every year in covering the expenses—roughly $4.4 million for its around 120 staffers.
It’s a costly investment for any start-up running with a relatively small team. But Jimenez is already seeing the payoff; each Rilla engineer generates about $4 million to $5 million in revenue yearly. And the start-up’s approach reflects a broader shift in how companies are rethinking workplace perks for an era of marathon office days. JPMorgan workers spending five days in-office can enjoy pickleball and tennis courts; every day at Goldman Sachs, staffers enjoy gourmet meals and cycling studios; and on Meta’s campus, employees have everything from gyms to cafes.
“Our goal isn’t simply to get people into the office. It’s to build an environment where they can do the best work of their lives,” the Rilla CEO said. “It’s to build an environment where they can do the best work of their lives.”
