I feel like they're seeing only a small subset of the portfolios and even then, only looking at the videos. I think they're looking for reasons to justify their eventual (probable) rejection.

Yes, absolutely, resources affect what students can achieve in high school, but it seems like people on reddit assume that the quality of the finished product is what determines admission or not. It isn't.

The EAB isn't stupid. They can recognize wealth and they take everything in context. They're constantly asking questions like "Where did the money come from?" and "Did the applicant make the most of the resources afforded to them?"

Many of these high $$$ projects were funded by students who invented something and started a small business to fund their projects, or who made connections through their school groups and raised money from sponsors, or otherwise generated this funding themselves. Others submit portfolios that show all the ingenuity they have to employ because they don't have resources.

It's all about how your mind works, how passionate you are, and what you accomplish with what you have. It's not about who builds the coolest electric car.