Managing Partner at Tenex, pioneering output-based compensation models that incentivize AI tool adoption and maximize engineering throughput. Previously founded multiple venture-backed AI companies and scaled Google Cloud AI to millions of developers.
Revolutionary Compensation Architect
Arman Hezarkhani is reimagining how engineering organizations structure compensation and incentives in the AI era, drawing from a unique background spanning venture-backed AI startups, Google Cloud AI, and teaching at Carnegie Mellon University.
Current Work
As Managing Partner at Tenex, Arman leads the development of revolutionary output-based compensation models that treat engineers like high-performing salespeople. His approach introduces story point-based payment with uncapped upside, where multiple engineers are anticipated to earn $1M+ annually by maximizing their use of AI tools and completing more work.
Arman writes on Medium and maintains a personal website at armanh.com, sharing insights on AI transformation, compensation innovation, and engineering productivity.
Background
Previously, Arman founded multiple venture-backed AI companies and played a key role in scaling Google Cloud AI to serve millions of developers. He has also served as an Adjunct Professor at Carnegie Mellon University, where he earned his degree in engineering. He is also the founder of Parthean, a personal finance AI platform.
Philosophy on Compensation & Incentives
Arman’s approach challenges traditional engineering compensation models:
Output over input - Engineers should be compensated based on completed work (story points) rather than hours worked, creating direct incentives to work smarter, faster, and leverage AI tools.
Uncapped upside - Removing compensation ceilings attracts top talent and motivates engineers to maximize their productivity without artificial limits.
AI as a multiplier - Compensation structures should actively encourage AI tool adoption, treating these tools as force multipliers rather than threats to existing pay structures.
Alignment of incentives - Pay structures should reflect actual value creation, borrowing proven models from sales compensation and applying them to engineering work.
Tenex
Tenex is an AI-first software consultancy co-founded by Arman Hezarkhani and Alex Lieberman (founder of Morning Brew). The company blends high-performance engineering with AI transformation consulting, offering services from product strategy to AI engineering using their revolutionary output-based compensation model. Tenex helps organizations modernize their operations through AI while simultaneously proving new models for engineering team structure and incentives.
Conference Appearance
Event: AI Engineering Code Summit 2025 Date: November 20, 2025 Time: 4:20 PM - 4:40 PM Session: Paying Engineers like Salespeople: How Tenex Rebuilt the Incentive Stack for Modern Engineering
Arman presented Tenex’s revolutionary approach to engineering compensation, demonstrating how output-based payment models with uncapped upside directly incentivize AI tool adoption and maximize engineering throughput. His talk explored the evolution of compensation structures and practical implementation strategies, including risk mitigation for story point inflation and quality concerns.
Last Updated: 2025-11-24