Mastodon’s founder cedes control, refuses to become next Musk or Zuckerberg

And perhaps in a nod to Meta's recent changes, Mastodon also vowed to "invest deeply in trust and safety" and ensure "everyone, especially marginalized communities," feels "safe" on the platform.

To become a more user-focused paradise of "resilient, governable, open and safe digital spaces," Mastodon is going to need a lot more funding. The blog called for donations to help fund an annual operating budget of $5.1 million (5 million euros) in 2025. That's a massive leap from the $152,476 (149,400 euros) total operating expenses Mastodon reported in 2023.

Other social networks wary of EU regulations

Mastodon has decided to continue basing its operations in Europe, while still maintaining a separate US-based nonprofit entity as a "fundraising hub," the blog said.

It will take time, Mastodon said, to "select the appropriate jurisdiction and structure in Europe" before Mastodon can then "determine which other (subsidiary) legal structures are needed to support operations and sustainability."

While Mastodon is carefully getting re-settled as a nonprofit in Europe, Zuckerberg this week went on Joe Rogan's podcast to call on Donald Trump to help US tech companies fight European Union fines, Politico reported.

Some critics suggest the recent policy changes on Meta platforms were intended to win Trump's favor, partly to get Trump on Meta's side in the fight against the EU's strict digital laws. According to France24, Musk's recent combativeness with EU officials suggests Musk might team up with Zuckerberg in that fight (unlike that cage fight pitting the wealthy tech titans against each other that never happened).

Experts told France24 that EU officials may "perhaps wrongly" already be fearful about ruffling Trump's feathers by targeting his tech allies and would likely need to use the "full legal arsenal" of EU digital laws to "stand up to Big Tech" once Trump's next term starts.

As Big Tech prepares to continue battling EU regulators, Mastodon appears to be taking a different route, laying roots in Europe and "establishing the appropriate governance and leadership frameworks that reflect the nature and purpose of Mastodon as a whole" and "responsibly serve the community," its blog said.

"Our core mission remains the same: to create the tools and digital spaces where people can build authentic, constructive online communities free from ads, data exploitation, manipulative algorithms, or corporate monopolies," Mastodon's blog said.