The AI boom is bringing a wave of startups to San Francisco, and employees are receiving generous benefits in one of the country\u2019s priciest housing markets.\u00a0<\/p>\n
Roy Lee, CEO of AI tech startup Cluely, which makes software for job interviews and work calls, told The New York Times<\/a> that he leased eight apartments for employees in a recently-built luxury complex situated just a one-minute walk away from the office. The rents in the 16-story building range from $3,000 to $12,000 a month.\u00a0<\/p>\n \u201cGoing to the office should feel like you\u2019re walking to your living room, so we really, really want people close,\u201d Lee told The Times on Thursday.<\/p>\n Flo Crivello, CEO of Lindy, another AI startup, said he offers his approximately 40 employees a $1,000 rent stipend every month if they live within a 10-minute walk of the company\u2019s office.<\/p>\n \u201cPeople are so much happier and healthier when they live close to work,\u201d he told The Times. \u201cThis makes them stick around for longer, perform better and work longer hours.\u201d<\/p>\n The AI boom has drawn a flood of money and talent to San Francisco, inflating rent in the process. The Bay Area has attracted 70% of AI venture capital funding nationwide since 2019, according to data from Pitchbook.\u00a0<\/p>\n Across the U.S. and Canada, the pool of tech workers with AI skills jumped more than 50% to 517,000 from mid-2024 to mid-2025, according to a September CBRE report<\/a>. The San Francisco Bay Area, New York metro and Seattle are the top U.S. markets for AI-specialty talent, accounting for 35% of the national total, the report said.<\/p>\n Meanwhile, fully remote working arrangements for open positions have declined<\/a>, and more employers are adopting hybrid arrangements<\/a> requiring tech talent to spend three or more days in the office. In San Francisco alone, 1 out of every 4 square feet of office space was leased by an AI company over the last two and a half years, according to CBRE.<\/p>\n Tightness in the office market is also seen in the residential sector. Over the past year, apartment prices in San Francisco rose 6%, on average, more than twice the 2.5% increase experienced in New York City and the highest rate in the nation, according to real estate tracker CoStar data cited by The Times. In hot spots like Mission Bay, near OpenAI\u2019s headquarters, rents climbed 13% recently.<\/p>\n Average rent for a San Francisco apartment is now $3,315 a month, just below New York City\u2019s, the nation\u2019s highest at $3,360. <\/p>\n