I think that it assumes too much malicious competency behind this. And WMF is anyway fundraising despite having a massive reserve anyway and making random grants (some really dubious).
So I would not treat it as a a part of some deliberate plan, just regular mismanagement.
Also, why unfinished technical projects would be really needed to justify fundraising? Finished and deployed ones would work even better.
Unless it is “lets make project, ignore outcome” not “lets make project and deliberately fail it”?