Cresta
Mid (~500)
Poolside
Small (~150)
Best For
Cresta
Best for: Professionals interested in Cresta
Poolside
Best for: AI researchers who want frontier code generation work with genuine remote flexibility and Paris offsites
Ratings
CrestaPoolside
4.6
3.8
Overall
3.7
3.5
Work-Life Balance
4.7
3.9
Culture & Values
4.6
3.8
Comp & Benefits
4.4
3.6
Senior Mgmt
4.4
3.6
Career Opps
👍 92% Recommend
👤 95% CEO Approval (CEO)
👍 76% Recommend
👤 80% CEO Approval (Jason Warner)
Culture Values
Cresta only
🚀 Ship Fast & Iterate💎 Strong Comp & Equity🎯 Direct Product Impact
Poolside only
🌐 Remote-Friendly🤝 Flat Hierarchy🧩 Wears Many Hats
Shared
⚙️ Engineering-Driven🌱 Learning & Growth
Pros & Cons
Cresta
- World-class engineering talent with zero politics and deep individual ownership
- Strong comp with real equity upside — median $271k TC for US engineers
- Fast-paced culture can be at odds with work-life balance during sprints
- Hyper-growth means roles and processes are constantly evolving
Poolside
- Remote-first with monthly Paris gatherings
- Cutting-edge code generation research
- Early-stage with limited structure
- Comp may trail larger AI labs
Bottom Line
Cresta
Cresta — check Glassdoor for detailed reviews.
Poolside
Choose Poolside if you want cutting-edge code AI research on a remote-first flat team (ex-GitHub CTO leadership) — but expect early-stage ambiguity and comp that trails the larger AI labs.
Open Roles
Cresta — 120 jobs
💻 Engineering
48
💼 Sales / GTM
27
🧠 ML / AI
9
📣 Marketing
8
🎨 Design
6
💰 Finance
3
👤 HR / People
3
⚙️ Operations
3
📋 Product
3
📊 Data
1
Poolside — 12 jobs
💻 Engineering
9
📊 Data
2
🧠 ML / AI
1
Summary
Cresta scores 4.6/5.0 on Glassdoor with a 3.7 work-life balance rating. Poolside scores 3.8/5.0 overall with a 3.5 WLB. That’s a 0.8-point gap on overall satisfaction.
Both companies share these culture values: Engineering-Driven, Learning & Growth. Cresta also emphasizes Ship Fast & Iterate, Strong Comp & Equity, Direct Product Impact. Poolside also emphasizes Remote-Friendly, Flat Hierarchy, Wears Many Hats.
On the hiring front, Cresta has 120 open roles and Poolside has 12 open roles.