Get ready for Reddit’s draconian crackdown on innovation! The platform is about to ban most automated bots from accessing its data, forcing companies to sign a licensing deal with the company in order to use Reddit content for commercial purposes. You know, like Google and OpenAI, who are no doubt thrilled to be paying Reddit for the privilege of using its data.

And don’t even get me started on the robots.txt file update. It’s like Reddit is trying to send a message to all the “bad actors” out there: “Hey, you may think you can just waltz in here and scrape our data for your own nefarious purposes, but think again!” The company’s chief legal officer, Ben Lee, is quoted as saying that this is a “signal” to those who don’t have an agreement with Reddit that they shouldn’t be accessing its data. But let’s be real, this is just a thinly veiled attempt to stifle innovation and maintain Reddit’s grip on its data. And what’s with the emphasis on “bad actors”? Is Reddit trying to imply that anyone who disagrees with its policies is a “bad actor”? It’s a clear attempt to silence dissent and maintain control.