My guess is that he thinks that someone will buy the company when they become insolvent, and there's some cash to be made, but that he can't get it right now if

My guess is that he thinks that someone will buy the company when they become insolvent, and there's some cash to be made, but that he can't get it right now if the other founder isn't willing to sell. Honestly - I have no idea if he's right, but I think the Pantheon DE is relatively pretty, and has some nice pieces. Combine with the fact that it's a fairly popular distro with new users... and I suspect there's at least a chance he's right (I'd still bet against it happening, though). But for 23k... if I were in his shoes I'd probably also take that bet. I'd much rather have a chance at 100k (even if low odds) over 1.5 month's salary at the new gig.