I think for the most part you can't negotiate for this sort of thing, because most companies are not going to work up a one-off, custom equity comp agreement. Not just for you, someone they've just finished interviewing, seem to have some enthusiasm about, but ultimately they have only a vague idea of how you're going to perform or how long you're going to stick around. Either the company offers it, or they don't.
I think more companies offering it is maybe driven by feedback loops around recruiting (prospective employees asking for more and varied opportunities for compensation, and rejecting offers that don't include them). And also perhaps by employees just simply becoming educated about and talking about this stuff, with the sometimes-tacit understanding that they're going to be looking elsewhere for other employment opportunities if their employers don't give them more than just salary bumps and occasional equity grant refreshes.
Great, thanks for the response. That seems like a realistic perspective on what is achievable in most cases. I guess it's good to have it in mind as something to raise on the offchance it might be something a particular company is willing to be flexible on.
I think more companies offering it is maybe driven by feedback loops around recruiting (prospective employees asking for more and varied opportunities for compensation, and rejecting offers that don't include them). And also perhaps by employees just simply becoming educated about and talking about this stuff, with the sometimes-tacit understanding that they're going to be looking elsewhere for other employment opportunities if their employers don't give them more than just salary bumps and occasional equity grant refreshes.