I think the real answer has to be that he gave them real numbers he expected them to pay. They all said wtf no but he promised similar numbers to his investors from the official channels.
People who are doing better then him (profit wise) at his own game bailed when asked for things he promised to deliver.
What does it actually cost? I have no basis for a ballpark guess even. I’ve seen this question asked to a number of admins and haven’t seen a direct answer.
It’s hard to judge how sustainable a donation based approach is without that info.