Team and People

This varies-- the biggest thing to note is that talented people and engineers exist in companies of all sizes.

There is a tendency for people at startups to be more mission-driven. Most folks get into the startup game, if not for the lottery ticket, to make a large dent either at the company or in the industry.

This tends to be less so for tech giants. At a large company, due to pure numbers, you're more likely to find similar-minded people. But you might also find more bureaucracy and layers of approval. There are also more teams to pick from.