Who Owns Reddit Now? (Explained)

Reddit is one of the most popular social communities and forums in the entire world.

It’s so popular that more than 850 million users visit the platform once a month, and around 70 million users visit the platform on a daily basis.

In fact, according to SimilarWeb, Reddit is the 16th most visited website in the entire world.

People from different backgrounds, regions, and interests come together on this platform to discuss and share their opinions on various topics.

But have you ever thought about who owns Reddit?

If you’re a big Reddit fan like me, you most probably have already thought about this at the back of your mind.

If you’re also curious to know about the ownership of Reddit, don’t worry, we’ve got your back.

In this post, we will reveal who owns Reddit, when it was created, and who is currently running the platform.

So, without wasting any further time, let’s dive right in.

Who Owns Reddit?

So, first things first, who owns Reddit?

Reddit is currently owned by Condé Nast Publications as an independent subsidiary of Condé Nast’s parent company, Advance Publications.

Just one year after its launch, Condé Nast Publications acquired 100% of the company. Since then, they have owned a majority share of the company.

Later, in 2014, they raised investments worth $50 million from various inventors such as Sam Altman, Peter Thiel, Marc Andreessen, Ron Conway, Joshua Schachter, and other angel investors from YCombinator.

That single $50 million investment round valued the company at a whopping $500 million at that time.

In July 2017, Reddit again raised $200 million in an investment round with a valuation of 1.8 billion at the time of investment.

After two years, in February 2019, Tencent bought a decent chunk of the company’s shares with an investment of $300 million at a $3 billion valuation.

In August 2021, another funding round of $700 million led by Fidelity Investments increased the company’s overall valuation to a whopping $10 billion mark.

Currently, Reddit has filed for its IPO (Initial Public Offering) and is planning to list on the NYSE (New York Stock Exchange) by 2024.

The company has not yet disclosed the official date of IPO opening for the public, but it is expected to go live by the first half of 2024.

After Reddit’s acquisition by Condé Nast Publications, the company has raised a large chunk of investment from angel and institutional investors over the last decade.

Currently, Condé Nast Publications holds the majority share within the company and full control over its administration.

When Was Reddit Created? (Origin Story)

The idea of creating a social community where people from different parts of the world can engage and share their opinions with each other first came into the minds of two college roommates, Steve Huffman and Alexis Ohanian.

Steve and Alexis were attending a lecture by entrepreneur Paul Graham, where they initially got the idea of Reddit.

After chatting with Paul Graham, he invited Steve and Alexis to apply to this startup incubator, YCombinator.

Supported by the funding provided by Ycombinator, Steve and Alexis coded the entire platform using the Common Lisp programming language and finally launched the platform in June 2005.

When they launched the platform, the site was completely empty, with no posts, and it looked like an online white paper.

Embarrassed by this, two co-founders decided to create hundreds of fake users and posts to make the site look more user-packed and popular.

Later, in October 2006, Reddit was acquired by Condé Nast Publications from its original founders for a reported $10-$20 million in an all-cash deal.

Even after the acquisitions, the two co-founders continued to work on Reddit until 2009, when they both officially left the company.

After Steve and Alexis left Reddit, Erik Martin, who initially joined the company as a community manager, was promoted to the general manager position in 2011.

Erik helped the company in many different ways and has made a huge contribution to Reddit’s overall growth.

Who is The CEO of Reddit?

You might be surprised to know the current CEO of Reddit is none other than one of the co-founders of the platform, Steve Huffman.

Yes, Steve did exit the company after its acquisition by Condé Nast Publications, but both the co-founders returned to the company after five years.

Alexis Ohanian became the full-time executive chairman of the company in November 2014, and Steve Huffman took the role of Chief Executive officer (CEO) in July 2015.

During the time when Steve and Alexis were away from the company, Yishan Wong and Ellen Pao ran the company and held the CEO position.

After Steve joined the company once again, he made some bold moves to restructure many parts of the company and also launched the Reddit app for both iOS and Android users.

Later, in April 2018, Reddit significantly redesigned the platform from scratch as Steve thought the users were no longer interested in the platform due to its “dystopian Craigslist” type design.

Steve also initiated various technological improvements to the platform. He added plenty of new features to make the platform more user-friendly and fun to use.

Reddit Revenue

In the last financial year of 2023, Reddit reported a net revenue of $810 million, which primarily came from the advertising part of the business.

Since 2014, Reddit has seen a YOY growth of at least more than 30-40%.

Here are the exact revenue numbers of Reddit from the year 2014 as per their latest IPO filling:

• 2014: $8 million
• 2015: $15 million
• 2016: $25 million
• 2017: $50 million
• 2018: $80 million
• 2019: $120 million
• 2020: $188 million
• 2021: $456 million
• 2022: $670 million
• 2023: $810 million

Reddit has seen tremendous growth in its revenue since 2019, and by the next year, it is expected to reach the $1 revenue club.

However, even after generating millions in revenue, Reddit has never made a single penny in profit since its launch.

In fact, in 2023, Reddit reported a net loss of $90.8 million, while in 2022, they reported a whopping $158.6 million net loss.

The loss has become a massive headache for the management as they have filled the IPO and are currently in the process of going public.

If they continue to incur this massive loss, going public could be a huge disaster for them as public markets don’t appreciate companies that continue to incur huge losses.

Why is Reddit Popular?

There’s no doubt about the popularity of Reddit.

After all, it’s the 16th most visited website in the entire world, and over 850 million users visit the platform at least once a month.

But have you ever thought about the secret sauce behind its popularity?

We have tried to get into Reddit users’ minds and decode the secret sauce that has made Reddit extremely popular among Genz and young audiences.

And as per my research, I believe Reddit is popular because of what I call “ACA.”

“ACA” basically stands for:

• Authenticity
• Community
• Anonymity

Reddit plays quite differently than most of the communities and social media platforms.

It’s not a platform where you can show off your knowledge or stuff like Facebook, Instagram, or YouTube.

No one knows who you are on Reddit.

If even you’re a billionaire, no one cares on the platform unless you’re adding value to the community.

This makes the platform super authentic and real compared to most social networks.

On top of that, Reddit is all about community. 

Humans like to stay connected with their communities since ancient times. It’s a basic human tendency that we all follow to date.

Reddit is a place where you can build your own community, hang out with them, chat about your favorite topics, and share each other’s opinions.

This simple thing makes the platform super connected to the users on a much deeper level.

Apart from all of these, one of the biggest reasons why I think Reddit is super popular is because they keep their users anonymous.

Unlike other platforms that list your DOB, real name, Email ID, address, and other vital personal information, Reddit never reveals any of your information apart from the Reddit username you have chosen.

You don’t necessarily have to choose a username similar to your real name. You can use any random username to create an account on the platform.

Also, you don’t even have to upload your profile picture on the platform.

These are some reasons why Reddit is so popular among today’s young audiences.

Not to forget, Reddit’s founders, team, and top executives also put in a lot of hard work to make the platform a reality.

Without them, the platform would not be a reality today.

FAQs Related to Reddit Ownership

What is Reddit’s net worth?

As per Reddit’s last funding round, which was done in 2021, Reddit was valued at $10 billion. So basically, Reddit’s current net worth is around $10 billion.

Has Reddit usage dropped?

No, Reddit’s usage has not dropped yet. Since its launch, Reddit has been growing steadily every single year, and it hasn’t noticed any usage drop in its lifetime.

Does Reddit count as social media?

Reddit is not totally a social media network. It’s like a social community platform where anyone can engage and share their opinion on specific topics.

Is Reddit a private company?

Yes, currently, Reddit is a private company that Condé Nast Publications majorly owns. But they plan to go public by the first half of 2024.

Is Reddit an American company?

Yes, Reddit is an American company with headquarters in San Francisco.

Does Google own Reddit?

No, Google does not own Reddit. Condé Nast Publications majorly owns Reddit.

Is Reddit owned by China?

No, Reddit is not owned by China. It’s a completely American company, although a Chinese giant, Tencent, is an investor in Reddit.

Is Reddit free?

Yes, Reddit is completely free to use.

Conclusion

By the end of this post, we hope now you know who owns Reddit.

To sum it up, Reddit is majorly owned by Condé Nast Publications, along with some other investors such as Tencent and Fidelity Investments.

Currently, they are planning to go public by 2024, and once they become a public company, everyone will get a chance to own a piece of the company.