If you want to be a high performing software engineer, you need to put in a lot of work.
BUT!
One difference I've found between startups and companies like OP described is how that work is allocated. Working at a startup had me laser focused on things that were directly tied to the business. Working at a big company means I can work on anything I want off the clock. Top performers at my current (bigco) workplace spend their time organizing community events and meetups, or live coding on twitch. Startup work might be like that if you get the perfect project that ties directly to your career ambitions, but for me it was just a particularly demanding job with more responsibility (and more potential upside.)
BUT!
One difference I've found between startups and companies like OP described is how that work is allocated. Working at a startup had me laser focused on things that were directly tied to the business. Working at a big company means I can work on anything I want off the clock. Top performers at my current (bigco) workplace spend their time organizing community events and meetups, or live coding on twitch. Startup work might be like that if you get the perfect project that ties directly to your career ambitions, but for me it was just a particularly demanding job with more responsibility (and more potential upside.)