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Substack

YC W18

San Francisco, US · Founded 2017 · Delaware corporation · 90 employees · 23 known investors

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Substack is a publishing platform that allows writers to create newsletters, cultivate audiences, and earn revenue through reader subscriptions.

Enterprise SoftwareMarketing TechMarketplacesMarketplaceUnited States of AmericaAmerica / CanadaPartly Remote

Founders & leadership· Y Combinator alumni (W18)

Substack was founded in 2017 by Chris Best, Jairaj Sethi, and Hamish McKenzie.

CBChris Best
Chris BestFounder and CEOHe previously served as co-founder and CTO at Kik.
JSJairaj Sethi
Jairaj SethiCo-founder · CTO
HMHamish McKenzie
Hamish McKenzieCo-founder and Chief Writing OfficerHe previously worked as a journalist covering technology and business, including as lead writer for Tesla, and has contributed to publications across New Zealand, Australia, Hong Kong, Canada, the UK, and the US.

Board

ACAndrew Chen
Andrew ChenBoard directorGeneral Partner at Andreessen Horowitz

Investors · 23

Andreessen Horowitzlisted by Andreessen HorowitzMenlo Park · $500K – $50Mvia Andrew Chen · led

How we know: a partner's Signal profile · funding news · offering press articles · fortune.com · Y Combinator's founder network · a16z.com · open dataset · 5k.vc investor directory · Not right? Tell us

Bond Capital Managementlisted by Bond Capital ManagementSan Francisco · $100K – $25M

How we know: a partner's Signal profile · funding news · bondcap.com · open dataset · 5k.vc investor directory · Not right? Tell us

Connetic Ventureslisted by Connetic VenturesCovington · $250K – $500K

How we know: Connetic Ventures's portfolio page · Not right? Tell us

FundersClublisted by FundersClubSan Francisco · $290K

How we know: FundersClub's portfolio page · Not right? Tell us

Garage Capitallisted by Garage CapitalWaterloo

How we know: Garage Capital's portfolio page · Y Combinator's founder network · open dataset · 5k.vc investor directory · Not right? Tell us

General Catalystlisted by General CatalystSan Francisco · $30M

How we know: Y Combinator's founder network · open dataset · 5k.vc investor directory · Not right? Tell us

J17 Capitallisted by J17 Capital

How we know: J17 Capital's portfolio page · Not right? Tell us

Metaplanetlisted by MetaplanetTallinn · $500K – $10M

How we know: metaplanet.com · Not right? Tell us

The Chernin Group (TCG Crypto)listed by The Chernin Group (TCG Crypto)Los Angeles · $50K – $5M

How we know: a partner's Signal profile · tcg.co · Not right? Tell us

VentureSouqlisted by VentureSouqAbu Dhabi · $100K – $10M

How we know: Y Combinator's founder network · venturesouq.com · Not right? Tell us

Wisdom Ventureslisted by Wisdom VenturesLos Gatos

How we know: Wisdom Ventures's portfolio page · Not right? Tell us

Wonder Ventureslisted by Wonder VenturesLos Angeles · $100K – $1.5M

How we know: Wonder Ventures's portfolio page · Not right? Tell us

Y Combinatorlisted by Y CombinatorSan Francisco · $500K

How we know: Y Combinator's portfolio page · the Y Combinator directory · offering press articles · press coverage · open dataset · 5k.vc investor directory · Not right? Tell us

Duro VenturesreportedLynnwood

How we know: open dataset · 5k.vc investor directory · Not right? Tell us

Fifty YearsreportedSan Francisco · $250K – $2M

How we know: open dataset · 5k.vc investor directory · Not right? Tell us

Lemonade Capitalreported

How we know: Y Combinator's founder network · Not right? Tell us

Michael OvitzreportedLos Angeles

How we know: Y Combinator's founder network · Not right? Tell us

Nomad Venture Partners, LlcreportedLos Angeles

How we know: Y Combinator's founder network · Not right? Tell us

Reinvent CapitalreportedNew York

How we know: a partner's Signal profile · Not right? Tell us

Stanford UniversityreportedStanford

How we know: Y Combinator's founder network · Not right? Tell us

UpHonest CapitalreportedSilicon Valley · $50K – $1M

How we know: Y Combinator's founder network · Not right? Tell us

ZhenFundreportedBeijing · $250K – $3M

How we know: Y Combinator's founder network · Not right? Tell us

Also in the syndicate · 1

Chernin Group

Funding

SEC filings, press & company announcements

$187.4M disclosed across 4 rounds · 2019–2025

▶$3.3MraisedMay 2023 · 1 investors · Other Technology
Rule 506(c)
Officers, directors & promoters on the filing
  • Hamish McKenzieDirector
  • Christopher BestExecutive Officer, Director
  • Andrew ChenDirector
Offering amount
$5M
Amount sold
$3.3M
First sale
May 2023
Incorporated
Corporation, Delaware
Federal exemptions
06c
Full filing on SEC EDGAR ↗
▶$65MraisedJun 2021 · 33 investors · Other
Rule 506(b)
Officers, directors & promoters on the filing
  • Christopher BestExecutive Officer, Director
  • Hamish McKenzieDirector
  • Andrew ChenDirector
Offering amount
$65M
Amount sold
$65M
First sale
Apr 2021
Incorporated
Corporation, Delaware, 2017
Federal exemptions
06b
Full filing on SEC EDGAR ↗
▶$19.1MraisedJul 2019 · 32 investors · Other
Rule 506(b)
Substack (YC W18) Raises $15.3m from Andreessen Horowitzon.substack.com · Jul 2019
Officers, directors & promoters on the filing
  • Christopher BestExecutive Officer, Director
  • Hamish McKenzieDirector
  • Andrew ChenDirector
Offering amount
$19.1M
Amount sold
$19.1M
First sale
Jul 2019
Incorporated
Corporation, Delaware, 2017
Federal exemptions
06b
Full filing on SEC EDGAR ↗

Source: SEC EDGAR Form D. Amounts as filed; amended filings shown once at their latest values.

Founder mafia

The Substack mafia →

7 people who came through Substack went on to found or lead other companies.

Justin Waldronseed investorFounded Playco enterprise-saas +1Michael Fertikmichaelfertik.substack.comFounded ModelcodeGabriel BirnbaumProduct DesignerFounded Y/nAlex CornellDesignerFounded CocoonLinda BlackFounder and Writer: Stem Cells and PetsFounded Gallant PetAnthem Hayek BlanchardPublisherFounded Anthem HoldingsTomasz PalaczBeyond Pale Blue (Newsletter)Founded Liftero

Related companies · 5

BooktropeBooktrope operated a publishing platform where authors, editors, designers, and marketing professionals formed teams to publish books across multiple formats without upfront author fees. The platform aimed to reduce production timelines and direct a larger share of book sales revenue to creators than traditional publishing models.
GoodreadsGoodreads is a social platform for readers to track books, share reviews with friends, and get personalized book recommendations from a recommendation engine. It serves book readers looking to discover new titles and discuss reading.
SvbtleSvbtle is a publishing platform for writers to organize, develop, and share articles and ideas. The platform emphasizes a distraction-free writing and reading experience with a focus on design and content preservation.
MatterMatter is a read-later app for iPhone, iPad, and web that saves articles, newsletters, threads, PDFs, and video/podcast content with parsing and search capabilities. The app serves individual readers seeking organized content consumption and curation across multiple sources.
Liva AILiva AI collects specialized training data for audio and video models used by AI research labs, addressing gaps in publicly available datasets. The company serves machine learning teams developing speech and video recognition systems.

Companies working in the same space as Substack.

In the news

Substack - Wikipediaen.wikipedia.org · Aug 2026Substack raises $100M from Chernin Group, Andreessen Horowitz, Skims CEO, and more | TechCrunchtechcrunch.com · Jul 2025Substack brings video to its Chat feature | TechCrunchtechcrunch.com · Jun 2024A new economic engine for cultureon.substack.com · Feb 2023Substack introduces 'private Substacks' that readers can request to subscribe to • TechCrunchtechcrunch.com · Jan 2023Substack (YC W18) Raises $15.3m from Andreessen Horowitzon.substack.com · Jul 2019

Frequently asked questions

What does Substack do?
Substack is a publishing platform that allows writers to create newsletters, cultivate audiences, and earn revenue through reader subscriptions.
Who founded Substack?
Substack was founded by Chris Best, Jairaj Sethi, Hamish McKenzie in 2017.
Who are Substack's investors?
Substack's investors include Andreessen Horowitz, Bond Capital Management, Connetic Ventures, FundersClub, Garage Capital, General Catalyst, J17 Capital, Metaplanet and 14 more.
How much funding has Substack raised?
Substack has disclosed $187.4M raised across 4 rounds.
Where is Substack headquartered?
Substack is headquartered in San Francisco, US.