How Nvidia, AMD, and Broadcom are going for 'employee tactics' that Amazon, Microsoft and Google have been using for years

Chipmakers Nvidia, AMD and Broadcom are reportedly adopting employee retention strategies that have been long used by big tech giants like Google, Amazon and Microsoft. According to a report by Business Insider, the leading chipmakers are offering massive stock-based compensation packages to their employees that vest over several years – a tactic that keeps workers from leaving a company too soon.

It states that employees at these chip firms are earning record paydays given their rising valuations. “It's a tactic that tech giants, such as Amazon and Google, have used for years to retain employees,” the Insider report says adding “Now that chipmakers are striking big deals to meet the growing demand for powering AI, the golden handcuffs at the US's three largest — Nvidia, AMD, and Broadcom — are tightening.”

What are RSUs

RSUs, or Restricted Stock Units, are a type of employee compensation given in the form of company shares.

But RSUs come with a catch. When a company gives RSUs, it’s not handing over shares right away. Instead, it’s a promise that the employee will receive shares in the future — usually after staying with the company for a certain period, called the vesting period.RSUs motivate employees to stick around and work hard, since the value of their shares grows if the company’s stock price goes up. They’re often called “golden handcuffs” because they tie employees to the company financially.

One Broadcom worker said their RSUs are now worth six times their base salary. Another Nvidia employee’s 2023 equity package of $488,000 is now valued at over $2.2 million, data from Levels.fyi shows.The BI report quotes an Nvidia employee who plans to leave when their equity vests say doing so before would have a "big cost”. "If I wanted to leave now, I do not think I can command the salary I have now with another company," they added.

Employee retention rates soar amid AI boom

As per the report, employee retention rates have increased during the AI boom. Nvidia acknowledges that “RSUs promote retention,” cited in its sustainability report that employee turnover has dropped from 5.3% in 2023 to 2.5% in 2025. CEO Jensen Huang has said he wants employees to build wealth along with the company’s growth. Roughly 20% of Nvidia’s staff have stayed for over a decade.Broadcom also reported a voluntary attrition rate of just 6.2% last year—below the tech industry average—crediting equity awards as a “powerful long-term retention incentive.”

Nvidia’s front-load rewarding

Nvidia is deploying another tactic to attract top engineers – front load rewards. The chip maker has begun “front-loading” its stock vesting schedule—similar to what Google, Uber, and DoorDash have done—giving employees a large chunk of their equity in the first year. However, the system has also created internal disparities. Some long-term employees have seen their RSUs multiply several times in value, while newer hires receive smaller grants. The BI report quotes an Nvidia worker who said “Some managers are just resting and vesting”, describing colleagues who stay on simply to collect payouts.