I'll also add, my personal reading of the quote has more than a note of "this sounds too good to be true." But that could well be a matter of interpretation.
Don't think was an apology. I find it dubious Zigs README on GitHub reads "never to exploit them financially". What a weird comment... Notwithstanding the whole readme comes off like a weird socialist manifesto.
V seeking (and receiving) Patreon or GitHub donations is not exploiting anyone. Neither mechanism is a contract. Either can be cancelled anytime, immediately. So like it or not, the sponsorship is a pretty accurate reflection of satisfied people (unless one is simply too lazy to cancel their pledge...).
I'll also add, my personal reading of the quote has more than a note of "this sounds too good to be true." But that could well be a matter of interpretation.