> Going forward, Rochko will continue contributing to Mastodon as an advisor. Rochko has also been compensated with a one-time payment of €1 million, given that he took less than a fair market salary over the years while building Mastodon.

Took a look at Mastodon's annual reports from 2021 to 2023[1][2][3], and the CEO wasn't just getting low compensation "for a CEO", but low compensation for tech workers in general (28,800 in 2021, 36,000 in 2022, and then 60,000 EUR in 2023). I couldn't find a report for 2024, but I think it's safe to say that the one-time payment was long overdue.

I am worried however that Mastodon will soon cave to the pressures of capitalism, and begin introducing profit-focused changes that undermine its original mission.

[1]: https://joinmastodon.org/reports/Mastodon%20Annual%20Report%... [2]: https://joinmastodon.org/reports/Mastodon%20Annual%20Report%... [3]: https://joinmastodon.org/reports/Mastodon%20Annual%20Report%...