I2P support forum

In the past, I would have said the fact that you have to start I2P and then configure your browser to use the proxy. This can turn off a lot of non-tech savvy users.

But that has been mainly eliminated by the Browser bundle (for windows users).

So my second guess would be the fact that you have to wait 10 minutes to use I2P to get a decent connection.

With tor, it's instantaneous. Your browser just connects to a few nodes and away you go!

But this is the TikTok Generation. No Gen Z kid wants to wait 10 minutes for 10% Tunnel creation rate!

One final guess I would say is the fact that you can only access I2P Eepsites. And if you wanted to use the clearnet, you have to use a method the I2P organization doesn't even recommend.

But what do you think? What is turning off new users from I2P?

-Chef K

What you said already.
Plus the fact that there is not a lot of content in i2p. This is a chicken/egg problem of course, it will not exist anymore, once the number of users is over a certain threshold.
Also, the advantages of darknets in general seems to be less obvious for the younger generation, so there's less motivation to use them.

I figured out how to use I2P without being 100.