[shakkhar]

> Do FAANGs hire such old ICs?

I can only talk about one of the letters in FAANG. Just my observation.

We definitely hire 50+ or even 60+ people. In my experience, all of the internal processes are designed to remove individual bias. You can get hired and be successful.

The problem arises when there's a mismatch in expectation. Suppose you look at your years of experience and shoot for IC7+. The bar for IC7 is _high_. From and IC7, they expect to see org-wide impact in your current role. An org is 1000+ people. Most ICs can spend an entire lifetime and not have that level of impact.

Basically, experience has little to do with level or comp. If you can lead a small team with a few people, are willing to come in at IC5, and fine with making 450k+, I don't see a problem with age.