"We've known for several months now that San Francisco has the fastest-rising rents in the country, and that the sharp rent increases are because of the AI boom. But the New York Times has a new analysis of how AI companies are gaming the rental market in their employees' favor, in some cases with $1,000-a-month rent stipends, or in other cases, simply paying the employees' rent for them out of the company's VC-rich coffers."
"Which AI company is giving their employees apartments for free? That would be the "cheat on everything app Cluely, helmed by 22-year-old Ivy League dropout CEO Roy Lee. Going to the office should feel like you're walking to your living room, so we really, really want people close, Lee told the New York Times. I feel like I'm more trying to build a frat house, and you don't commute to a frat house."
"The apartment building in question is likely the Quincy, just a few doors down from Cluely headquarters, as that's the nearest development belonging to the Strada Investment Group that confirmed the deal with the Times. These free rent' and rent stipend' deals are already affecting open houses for apartments. According to the Times, AI workers are showing up to apartment viewings with "envelopes of cash in hand," noting that one applicant offered to pay the deposit on site, with about $7,000 in an envelope."
San Francisco is experiencing the fastest-rising rents, driven in part by an AI boom that increases rental demand. AI companies are offering $1,000 monthly rent stipends or directly paying employees' rent from venture capital funds. Some firms provide free apartments to make workplaces feel like living spaces and encourage proximity. These practices have altered competition at open houses, with AI candidates bringing cash envelopes and offering immediate deposits. Non-tech renters face growing disadvantage and potential displacement as rental markets shift toward well-funded tech employees.
Read at sfist.com
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