Github stars are a metric of what?

If I build something that satisfies me and say 100 users (who all star me) does that really say anything. Are those 100 stars even "real" any more?

All the old problems of the web are new again, and still remain unsolved.

github stars are a metric of investability.

some investors use stars (and star growth velocity) to determine which projects they invest or don't invest in. (not saying it's good or bad - just saying it's a real thing.)