Watch out Stage 2
Substack’s 10% + fees bargain beat ad media for many writers. Notes, video, and discovery nudge writers toward living entirely on Substack, and it now pilots native ads. Writers can still take their subscriber lists with them. Stage 2.
- Since
- 2017
- Category
- Creator economy
- VC-backed
- Yes
- Public
- No
- Website
- substack.com
The promise
Its first promise, and how much is kept · Scoring
80% kept
“When you pay writers with money instead of clicks, you buy their best work.”
Why it’s rated 2
The criteria it meets, with sources · Method
- Alignment 0 of 3
- None
- Lock-in 0 of 4
- None
- Extraction 1 of 7
-
- E2 More ads Jul 17, 2025
- Decline 0 of 3
- None
Result No extraction that meets the stage 3 test, and either some lock-in or no alignment criterion, so stage 2.
News signals
Sourced reporting, tagged by strategy
Jul 17, 2025
Substack raises $100M at $1.1B valuation and pilots native ads
Ad expansionInvestor pressure
Jan 9, 2024
Dec 21, 2023