He just needs the illusion that it’s profitable. He doesn’t care if user engagement is shitting on him, as long as users are still engaged. Once he’s lined his pockets, he’s gonna jump ship. But not before he’s able to milk every penny he thinks he can get.
If he's just looking to cash out and move on then what he's doing makes sense. Otherwise it's insanity. He'll be going down with the ship. As far as investors, I think it's mostly speculation.