Comment by disgruntledphd2

> If they are able to actually successfully pivot into ads as a business model, it's very easy to justify the valuation: Just look at Google/Meta.

Ads are not just a switch one can turn on. Firstly, you need to build a decent ad serving/targeting/pacing engine. Secondly (and more importantly) you need to hire a shed ton of sales people (in many, many geos) and then ramp them all up (difficult if you're building the product at the same time).

And then you need to keep at it for 3-5 years minimum before you'll finally get the bigger/more conservative brands/agencies/etc to buy in properly.

At that point, you'll make decent money, after accounting for all of the costs. I'm not sure that you'll make enough money, but it would definitely stanch their bleeding a little.

tl;dr if they haven't already built this ad product, it's unlikely to make a material difference before 2030.