Skip to content
a16za16z

Substack Cofounder on AI Slop Content & the Decline of Social Media

What if the future of media isn’t controlled by algorithms or legacy institutions—but by independent voices building directly with their audiences? In this episode, Erik Torenberg is joined by Chris Best, cofounder and CEO of Substack, along with a16z general partners Katherine Boyle and Andrew Chen. We trace the origin story of Substack and its cultural impact, including how it reinvented the business model for independent media. We also explore the evolution of blogging, the rebundling of media, and what the future holds as attention becomes the scarcest resource. Timecodes: 0:00 The Future of Media & Substack’s Role 0:48 The 2020 Media Landscape and Free Speech 3:19 Substack’s Founding Philosophy 6:10 The Evolution of Blogging and Business Models 8:27 Building Direct Connections with Audiences 11:41 The Vision and Growth of Substack 17:57 Algorithms, Networks, and Creator Incentives 22:00 High Value Audiences and Advertising 23:48 AI, Content Creation, and the Value of Attention 29:17 Unbundling, Rebundling, and the New Media Economy 33:01 The Future of Media 38:10 Academia, and Long-Form Writing 43:53 Substack’s Ambitions and Recent Fundraising Resources: Find Chris on Substack: https://cb.substack.com/ Find Chris on X: https://x.com/cjgbest Find Andrew Chen on Substack: https://andrewchen.substack.com/ Find Andrew on X: https://x.com/andrewchen Find Katherine on X: https://x.com/KTmBoyle Find Katherine on Substack: https://boyle.substack.com/ Stay Updated: Let us know what you think: https://ratethispodcast.com/a16z Find a16z on Twitter: https://twitter.com/a16z Find a16z on LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/company/a16z Subscribe on your favorite podcast app: https://a16z.simplecast.com/ Follow our host: https://x.com/eriktorenberg Please note that the content here is for informational purposes only; should NOT be taken as legal, business, tax, or investment advice or be used to evaluate any investment or security; and is not directed at any investors or potential investors in any a16z fund. a16z and its affiliates may maintain investments in the companies discussed. For more details, please see a16z.com/disclosures.

Erik TorenberghostChris BestguestKatherine BoyleguestAndrew Chenguest
Sep 1, 202547mWatch on YouTube ↗

At a glance

WHAT IT’S REALLY ABOUT

Substack’s bet: creator independence amid algorithms, AI slop, attention scarcity

  1. Substack positions itself as a new “economic engine for culture” that lets independent creators earn directly from audiences while retaining editorial freedom and audience ownership.
  2. The 2020–2021 media climate is framed as a pivotal moment for Substack’s cultural role, when deplatforming and institutional pressure made a free-speech-aligned infrastructure unusually valuable.
  3. The conversation argues that algorithm-driven platforms weaken creator–audience bonds and distort incentives, motivating Substack’s push to become a destination network with different “laws of physics.”
  4. AI is described as a dual-use force that can either flood feeds with low-value “slop” optimized for clicks or dramatically increase creative leverage for serious creators producing multi-format work.
  5. Substack’s next chapter involves scaling its network layer (discovery, community, formats) while cautiously exploring ads/sponsorships without importing the adversarial incentive structure of legacy ad-driven social media.

IDEAS WORTH REMEMBERING

5 ideas

Substack’s core pitch is incentive redesign, not just publishing tools.

Best frames Substack as rebuilding the economic engine for culture so creators can take editorial risk, make real money, and answer to readers rather than institutions or ad markets.

Portability (the right to exit) is a strategic moat, not a weakness.

Letting writers export email lists forces Substack to continuously earn loyalty through product and network value; “boomerangs” who leave and return validate this approach.

Direct connection is an “algorithm override” that enables creative risk-taking.

Subscriptions/inbox reach let creators publish work that wouldn’t satisfy a “For You” ranking system, calling on trust rather than chasing engagement optimization every time.

The fight has shifted from “too little content” to “too little worth your attention.”

They argue social media solved boredom and created an abundance of content, but now attention is scarce and quality is the differentiator—especially as AI increases volume.

Algorithms aren’t inherently bad; misaligned objective functions are.

Best suggests the constructive path is building recommendation systems optimized for user value and creator success—not for maximizing ad impressions or compulsive consumption.

WORDS WORTH SAVING

5 quotes

In the early days, people would often say to me in an accusatory tone, "Substack is just blogging with a business model." And I was like, "You know, that sounds pretty good."

— Chris Best

I aspire that the Substack app can be a place where you, you look back at the time you spend on it and think, "Damn, I'm glad I did that. That made me a better person."

— Chris Best

We've entered a world where attention is the scarce resource.

— Chris Best

The hardest part about writing is writing.

— Katherine Boyle

I started a whole company to procrastinate from finishing an essay.

— Chris Best

2020 media censorship pressures and “free speech” stanceCreator independence and direct audience connection (email/subscriptions)Right to exit, portability, and “boomerang” creatorsAlgorithms vs follower graphs; objective functions and incentivesAttention scarcity and the “two futures of media”AI-enabled content production: leverage vs slopUnbundling/rebundling media; ambitious media foundersAdvertising/sponsorships trade-offs for high-value audiencesAcademia and broken incentives in scientific publishingSubstack fundraising and building an internet-scale network

High quality AI-generated summary created from speaker-labeled transcript.

Get more out of YouTube videos.

High quality summaries for YouTube videos. Accurate transcripts to search & find moments. Powered by ChatGPT & Claude AI.

Add to Chrome