I seriously considered it at some point, as in my (former) field many top researchers lived in Philly, New York, Boston + Toronto. Becoming a top researcher means travelling where other top researchers are. It was definitely not about money, pay is often equivalent between the EU and the US.
Eventually decided it was not worth it for me (had other priorities in life), but this is a sacrifice many EU researchers make (or should I say, made) to become top researchers.
Why did they leave the EU in the first place
Most probably money
I seriously considered it at some point, as in my (former) field many top researchers lived in Philly, New York, Boston + Toronto. Becoming a top researcher means travelling where other top researchers are. It was definitely not about money, pay is often equivalent between the EU and the US.
Eventually decided it was not worth it for me (had other priorities in life), but this is a sacrifice many EU researchers make (or should I say, made) to become top researchers.
Operation Paperclip back in the day. Grants and such recently.