The Journey of Reddit: From Crisis to IPO
In 2015, Reddit found itself in the midst of a leadership crisis, with a revolving door of chief executives and a combative community of users. In a desperate move, the social media platform turned to one of its founders, Steve Huffman, to come back and take the reins.
Huffman, who was initially reluctant to return to the headache that Reddit had become, described his decision as “running into a burning building.” Despite the challenges, he managed to turn the company around, increasing revenues from $12 million to over $800 million a year and growing the team from 80 employees to 2,000.
Now, in 2022, Reddit is on the verge of going public in one of the first tech initial public offerings of the year. This move is significant as Reddit represents a throwback to an earlier era of social media, standing out from the recent focus on artificial intelligence in tech start-ups.
However, Reddit’s path to the stock market has not been without obstacles. The company aims to raise up to $748 million in its offering, with some skepticism from potential investors. The WallStreetBets community on Reddit, known for fueling the rise of “meme stocks,” has expressed doubts about Reddit’s ability to monetize its platform.
Despite the challenges, Reddit has made significant strides under Huffman’s leadership, implementing policy changes to combat hate speech and misinformation. The company has also built out its advertising business and struck deals to license its user data for AI training.
As Reddit prepares to go public, former employees are eagerly anticipating the opportunity to sell their shares and reap the rewards of their hard work. The company’s journey from crisis to IPO is a testament to resilience and innovation in the ever-evolving landscape of social media.
