Profit is a balance between income and expenses. He's hired a ton of people in hopes that they could radically increase their revenues. So it's a little rich for him to complain that Reddit isn't profitable when he's the one who made the choices making that way. In contrast, they could have taken the path of Wikipedia or Craigslist or Whatsapp, keeping the costs very low as a way of achieving profitability.
That was the path they took for the first 5-6 years, it didn't work. Tech savvy userbase with adblock and nobody bought Reddit Gold. Remember the monthly donation bar for their server costs? It never got close to filling. That was pre-new reddit.
So they got investment and scaled up to everyday users. Terrible redesign but at least the site doesn't look nerdy anymore, right? There are now actual advertisers on board. People are paying for badges and hats. They are tracking the shit out of people and pushing the app. They're on the way to profitability, and the next step is to cut out the old guard - who they couldn't monetize anyway - by removing third party apps.
Their costs are almost certainly ridiculous but their plan is either to become the next TikTok or crash and burn.
I'd rather contribute to something that is actually going to be successful.
If you say you need £1000000 to go to space, and ask for £10 sponsorship, if you tell me you've so far raised nothing, what chance is there of my money going to use as intended? If on the other hand you've raised £999000 I can be more confident you are actually going to reach your goal.
Depends on whether you view your donation as a good will gesture/reimbursement of sorts for services rendered – or if you consider in an investment with more clearly defined objectives at the end of the fundraising campaign.
I suspect it's just basic human behaviour. If other people are doing it, then it's somewhat normalised.
Also personally, it seems to me that if you have a goal, then that's a minimum. If you don't reach it, the thing doesn't happen. A website never reaching its funding goals is one that seems more likely to shut down, and what's the point of supporting something that could shut down tomorrow because it can't pay it's way. I know that's self reinforcing but there it is.
