AI Compensation and Negotiation in Industry Workshop (co&co @ NeurIPS 2026, ATL)
As AI reshapes industries, compensation is changing faster than researchers can track.
New labs, startups, and top companies are competing for talent with vastly different pay structures, currencies, and cultural norms.
Yet most researchers are never formally taught how to understand their worth or navigate these systems.
The result is an uneven landscape where brilliant minds often make life-changing decisions without the information they need.
The session begins with a concise, data-driven talk on current AI compensation and negotiation trends, grounded in real stories and case studies.
Key Takeaways:
- How to evaluate compensation (salary, equity, bonuses) across industry roles such as Research/Applied/Data Scientists, Research/Machine Learning/Software Engineers, and more;
- How to compare global opportunities and account for regional differences in pay structures;
- How to identify leverage points and negotiate effectively at different career stages and levels;
- How to respond to pushback and recognize red vs. green flags in job offers;
- Step-by-step timeline of a typical negotiation
- How to negotiate the deadline, and avoid having an offer rescinded;
- How to advocate for yourself without counteroffers and amidst having fears.
About the Speaker:
Nicole Bannon is the founder of co&co, a strategic communications and negotiation consultancy for technical talent. She has coached 500+ AI researchers and engineers through high-stakes negotiations, helping clients land offers at OpenAI, DeepMind, Meta, Anthropic, and more — including comp packages up to $7.4M/year.
Nicole has given talks (like this one) at major conferences 10+ times, including ICML 2024 (400+ attendees), NeurIPS, CVPR, ACL, ICLR, and the Grace Hopper Celebration over 2022-2025. She’s partnered with Black in AI, Women in Machine Learning, Women in Computer Science, and other affinity groups to make negotiation education more inclusive and accessible across the field.
Track Record & Demand:
This session builds on a series of well-attended “Know Your Market Value” events hosted at NeurIPS, ICML, CVPR, ACL, and ICLR, each drawing 150–400+ attendees.