A media future to believe in

$100 million to build a new economic engine for culture

Today, we’re announcing $100 million in Series C funding, led by investors at BOND and The Chernin Group (TCG), with participation from Andreessen Horowitz, Rich Paul, CEO and founder of Klutch Sports Group, and Jens Grede, CEO and co-founder of SKIMS. BOND’s Mood Rowghani will join our board. We’re thrilled to partner with these investors, who bring a wealth of experience across tech, media, and culture, as we put this capital to work serving creators and their communities.

We’re living through a time of rapid technological change, one that’s reshaping how we communicate, create, and live. Every leap forward brings both promise and peril. The tools we hoped would uplift and enrich us have too often degraded or dehumanized us instead. Now, as powerful new technologies emerge daily, they arrive freighted with both hope and anxiety. The challenges ahead are real.

But this time of flux also holds tremendous opportunity. A growing number of people are navigating the chaos by choosing independence. Audiences are investing their attention and money in what they value, not just what addicts them. Creators are building livelihoods based on trust, quality, and creative freedom. They know the future belongs to those who build it.

At Substack, we believe the heroes of culture are the ones who shape it. Technology should serve them, not the other way around. That’s why we’re building tools and a network to protect their independence, amplify their voices, and foster deep and direct relationships. These are the people who will lead us to a better culture, and a future we can believe in.

This funding is our chance to get behind them. We’ll invest in better tools, broader reach, and deeper support for the writers and creators driving Substack’s ecosystem. Already, hundreds of millions of dollars flow from audiences to creators there every year. Millions use the app weekly, and pay for the work they discover. But this is just the beginning.

The model is working—across writing, audio, video, and communities—and this funding lets us go further. We’re doubling down on the Substack app, which is designed to help audiences reclaim their attention and connect with the creators they care about. We aim to prove that a media app can be fun and rewarding without melting your brain. An escape from the doomscroll, and a place to take back your mind.

We’re also building tools that give superpowers to anyone who has something important to say. Creators face enough challenges without juggling logistics and expenses. Substack should feel like a studio in your pocket—we take care of everything except the hard part: the creative work itself.

Most importantly, we’re building an economic engine to power this entire cultural ecosystem. Our model is simple: creators make money by serving their communities, and Substack succeeds only when they do. Audiences vote with attention and money for the culture they want, acting as collaborators in shaping a media ecosystem rooted in intention and connection. And everyone is part of a network that rewards trust, not manipulation. Substack is growing fast around the world, and we’re accelerating our work to bring the platform to new markets, so more people everywhere can support the creators they care about.

Independence shouldn’t mean going it alone. We’re building technologies that work for you, not against you—helping you carve out your own space on the internet, where you set the rules. It’s a system that rewards integrity, curiosity, and courage.

None of this happens without you. To everyone publishing on, subscribing to, or just exploring Substack: thank you. We’re honored to play a part, and excited for what this funding will unlock. The future of media belongs to you, and it can’t come soon enough.