I up voted because you have a point, but companies could have a big name, an hr department but very little or no revenue or repeatable business model. Unless it's bootstrapped and tiny, owing investors a return on their investment either through additional financing rounds or net revenue sounds like it's still starting/growing to me. I generally agree that once you are doing it, you are doing it.
Once you have a department that dictates you get 4 days bereavement leave when a parent, spouse, or child dies, 3 days off for a sibling, 2 days off for the death of a step- relation and 1 day off for a cousin you are no longer a startup.
I turned down a job at a company that wanted me to agree to those terms.
edit, Bonus Requirement From the Handbook:
Employees of [Redacted Inc.] are not to correspond with anybody who is not a current customer or current employee of this company, without express written permission from the CEO or the President.
Like my friend says, if you have an HR department, you are no longer a startup. You have started. You are up.