Reddit’s average number of DAUqs increased 12 percent year-over-year (YoY) in Q3.
Huffman has shown interest in Reddit becoming less dependent on search referrals.
“Logging into the DAUq app are our most valuable users, and they are our primary focus,” he wrote.
Reddit has been testing a login requirement on desktop since at least August, per user reports.
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The login requirement is one of many changes Reddit has made in recent years to grow its user base from its website and mobile apps, which also make it easier to track user activity.
Earlier this year, Reddit began testing a claim that people use one of its mobile apps to access its mobile website. It plans to expand testing.
“Currently, only about 13 percent of eligible mobile web users see the app conversion prompt, so this has room for scale,” Huffman said.
Since July, Reddit requires users to be logged in to use Old.Reddit.com. More recently, it blocked access to Old Reddit for people who haven’t logged in in the last six months.
Reddit also effectively shut down most third-party apps by making its API expensive in 2024.
Combined, the changes should make it significantly easier for Reddit to understand who uses Reddit and why, which it says will help manage things like AI scraping and evolving search habits.
The changes are also intended to help Reddit understand ad effectiveness and gain additional insights into user activity, while making it more attractive to advertisers and investors.
Reddit reported net income of $283 million (a 74 percent YoY increase) on $895 million in revenue (a 53 percent YoY increase) in Q3.
Advance Publications, which owns Ars Technica parent Condé Nast, is the largest shareholder in Reddit.