[onetwofifth]

"If I had to guess, it sounds like perhaps they had no idea how much the market rate was and then"

One of the persons who made the offer knew my previous salary (close to the new offer). And I negotiated with him before.

Furthermore he knows exactly what the market rate is, as he dealt with it on a daily basis.

That theory (they didn't know..) is debunked. They even mentioned Angel List saying "in the valley they pay 80-140k", which is strange because that fact undercuts their own argument (though they said that equity was much lower.. )