I'm not sure that dilution is really the word you're going for here. Dilution implies / has the connotation that it is foisted upon you unwillingly and unknowingly, as in employees "get" diluted.
The founders chose to get diluted at each round. And you're ignoring that at each "dilution", the value went up. The company didn't start at $24bn and at each round the founders got their value diluted, down to around a mere $500mm. The founders started at 100% of $0 and got "diluted" up to $500mm each.
I'd call it a fun lesson in meteoric wealth growth for 2 guys starting with just an idea. $500mm/7yrs = $70mm/year. That's remarkable.
They also earned less than The Rock. They earned less than Messi. They earned less than Mayweather in one single fight a couple of years ago.
For the hedge fund managers note that this is not just "pay", it includes as well the returns on their own invested fortunes. The #1 in the list is not even working (he's 80 and he retired 10 years ago). They may make billions, but they also may lose billions: since 2011, John Paulson's estimated wealth is down from $15bn to $5bn.
The founders chose to get diluted at each round. And you're ignoring that at each "dilution", the value went up. The company didn't start at $24bn and at each round the founders got their value diluted, down to around a mere $500mm. The founders started at 100% of $0 and got "diluted" up to $500mm each.
I'd call it a fun lesson in meteoric wealth growth for 2 guys starting with just an idea. $500mm/7yrs = $70mm/year. That's remarkable.