Chris Best of Substack on the Future of Media

2025-09-02 · 46 min · episode 915 · 23 entities

episode page audio

Asserted relationships

→ references cb.substack.com website

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evidence rules-v4
Link in episode "Chris Best of Substack on the Future of Media": https://cb.substack.com/
→ references andrewchen.substack.com website

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evidence rules-v4
Link in episode "Chris Best of Substack on the Future of Media": https://andrewchen.substack.com/
→ references boyle.substack.com website

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evidence rules-v4
Link in episode "Chris Best of Substack on the Future of Media": https://boyle.substack.com/
→ appeared on The a16z Show podcast

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Chris Best of Substack on the Future of Media
→ hosted by Andreessen Horowitz person

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Feed author/publisher: Andreessen Horowitz
→ works at Substack company

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CEO of Substack
→ works at Substack company

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CEO of Substack
→ discusses Science concept

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Feed category: Science
→ discusses Technology concept

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evidence rules-v4
Feed category: Technology
→ discusses Business concept

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evidence rules-v4
Feed category: Business
→ discusses Entrepreneurship concept

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evidence rules-v4
Feed category: Entrepreneurship
→ hosted by a16z company

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evidence rules-v4
Feed author/publisher: a16z

Entities found in this episode

concepts 9

mentioned Science concept

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evidence rules-v4
Feed category: Science
mentioned Technology concept

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evidence rules-v4
Feed category: Technology
mentioned Business concept

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evidence rules-v4
Feed category: Business
mentioned Entrepreneurship concept

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evidence rules-v4
Feed category: Entrepreneurship
mentioned Media concept

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evidence rules-v4
the Future of Media
discusses Science concept

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evidence rules-v4
Feed category: Science
discusses Technology concept

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evidence rules-v4
Feed category: Technology
discusses Business concept

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evidence rules-v4
Feed category: Business
discusses Entrepreneurship concept

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evidence rules-v4
Feed category: Entrepreneurship

websites 6

mentioned cb.substack.com website

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evidence rules-v4
Link in episode "Chris Best of Substack on the Future of Media": https://cb.substack.com/
mentioned andrewchen.substack.com website

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evidence rules-v4
Link in episode "Chris Best of Substack on the Future of Media": https://andrewchen.substack.com/
mentioned boyle.substack.com website

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evidence rules-v4
Link in episode "Chris Best of Substack on the Future of Media": https://boyle.substack.com/
references cb.substack.com website

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evidence rules-v4
Link in episode "Chris Best of Substack on the Future of Media": https://cb.substack.com/
references andrewchen.substack.com website

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evidence rules-v4
Link in episode "Chris Best of Substack on the Future of Media": https://andrewchen.substack.com/
references boyle.substack.com website

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evidence rules-v4
Link in episode "Chris Best of Substack on the Future of Media": https://boyle.substack.com/

companys 4

mentioned Substack company

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CEO of Substack
works at Substack company

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evidence rules-v4
CEO of Substack
works at Substack company

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evidence rules-v4
CEO of Substack
hosted by a16z company

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evidence rules-v4
Feed author/publisher: a16z

persons 3

mentioned Andreessen Horowitz person

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evidence rules-v4
Feed author/publisher: Andreessen Horowitz
mentioned Chris Best of Substack person

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evidence rules-v4
Chris Best of Substack on the Future of Media
hosted by Andreessen Horowitz person

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evidence rules-v4
Feed author/publisher: Andreessen Horowitz

podcasts 1

appeared on The a16z Show podcast

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evidence rules-v4
Chris Best of Substack on the Future of Media

Episode description as stored

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: 00:00 Introduction 03:50 Origins of Substack 06:29 The Evolution of Blogging & Media Models 09:15 Direct Audience Connection & Platform Independence 10:57 Vision for Substack & The Role of Algorithms 21:06 Business Models: Ads, Subscriptions, and AI 26:10 The Scarcity of Attention & Value of Good Content 27:45 Unbundling, Rebundling, and the Future of Media Companies 37:12 Academia, Books, and Changing Content Formats 44:31 Substack’s Next Phase & Closing Thoughts 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. Stay Updated: Find a16z on YouTube: YouTube Find a16z on X Find a16z on LinkedIn Listen to the a16z Show on Spotify Listen to the a16z Show on Apple Podcasts Follow our host: https://twitter.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. Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.