Mastodon (and Lemmy) had the opportunity of its lifetime and failed to capture it. It honestly feels like crypto with lots of smart people wasting time on a doomed concept.
I feel like we are comparing apple and oranges here. Mastodon and Lemmy are free project, run by a community and, in the case of Mastodon, backed by a non-profit. Depending on who you ask, they don't really give a damn about capturing the opportunity. It is not a for profit venture where capturing new user is essential and critical. It is about creating something they think are cool, neat and want to use.