This is not a new trick. Charities, NGOs, even universities have long played the same game, crying poor to the public while hoarding endowments and spending lavishly behind the curtain , but Wikipedia’s case cuts deeper, because it built its reputation on the promise of openness, transparency, and public service. Instead, the foundation has quietly grown into a midsize corporate bureaucracy, swollen with staff whose actual connection to the encyclopedia is tenuous at best.
Wikipedia aggressively asks for donations to “stay ad-free”, but they have $287M in assets and hosting is only $3M
Other expenses: $6M on travel, $28M on ‘grants and awards’, and $107M on salaries pic.twitter.com/47bWpq1vSB
— near (@nearcyan) September 12, 2025
being given the Windows Update Treatment. JS is now disabled 🙂 pic.twitter.com/DIBgm1S6W4
— near (@nearcyan) September 12, 2025
