Reddit, RDDT, CEO Steve Huffman has hinted that in future some subreddits could be paywalled, as the company seeks to devise new sources of income
During an earnings call, Reddit CEO Steve Huffman mentioned that the company plans to test AI-powered search results later this year, hinting at the potential for AI to become a significant source of revenue.
Reddit’s Focus on Monetization
Reddit has been increasingly focused on generating revenue, especially in preparation for its IPO. The company made headlines over a year ago when it began charging developers for API access, which led to the shutdown of popular third-party apps like Apollo. This sparked widespread protests, which Reddit eventually had to shut down forcibly.
In addition, Reddit signed a deal with Google, allowing its posts to be used as AI training data. Following this, Reddit blocked other search engines from accessing its data.
AI Search as a Revenue Driver
Engadget reports that Huffman sees AI-powered search as a new avenue for generating ad revenue. He indicated that Reddit will begin testing AI-powered search results later this year, and believes this could eventually lead to a significant increase in advertising revenue.
The Possibility of Paywalled Subreddits
Huffman also hinted that Reddit may explore paywalled subreddits in the future as part of its effort to monetize new features. He suggested that while the free version of Reddit will continue to exist and grow, the company may introduce exclusive subreddits with private content or areas that require payment.
"I think the existing, altruistic, free version of Reddit will continue to exist and grow and thrive just the way it has,” Huffman said. “But now we will unlock the door for new use cases, new types of subreddits that can be built that may have exclusive content or private areas, things of that nature."
