Which was explicitly denied by reddit and is no different than any other piece of baseless speculation.

But it does seem to fit the corporate 'need to monetize' narrative quite well.

The bulk of that 'narrative' is speculative tinfoilhattery as well so of course it fits. See all the handwringing about potential monetization of AMA without anyone ever suggesting any kind of remotely plausible revenue model for it. And again, this is something reddit have addressed directly.

Pao specifically denied this screenshot.

And the US government denied Area 51 existed until 2013. Fire is hot, water is wet, PR is slimy.

There's no way to know whether it's correct or not, use your best judgement. Pao denying anything brings nothing to the table.

Interesting, thanks for sharing.