Yeah, I read this article and for whatever reason had a sense of this being very cult-like. The terminology being used is similar to how cults load the language to make everyone feel like they are part the in-crowd. And, his offer to pay severance to anyone who wanted to quit just felt like how a cult leader will say "the door is always open if you want to leave."

Of course, he isn't actually building a cult, but I find the similarities of indoctrination very interesting.