# Substack: Chris Best and Hamish McKenzie

- Show: [How I Built This](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/how-i-built-this)
- Published: 2025-05-12
- Length: 1h 18m
- Page: https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/how-i-built-this/2025-05-12-substack-chris-best-and-hamish-mckenzie

## Summary

Chris Best, former CTO of Kik Interactive, and Hamish McKenzie, a journalist and author, co-founded Substack to create a direct monetization platform for writers, moving away from the ad-supported models of Facebook and Twitter. They discuss the skepticism they faced when pitching the idea that people would pay for newsletters, the strategic decision to take a low 10% cut to align incentives, and how a free-speech stance helped them attract prominent journalists during the pandemic. The episode also covers their refusal of an acquisition offer from Elon Musk and their strategy to maintain financial independence by avoiding excessive fundraising.

## Chapters

- [0:00](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/how-i-built-this/2025-05-12-substack-chris-best-and-hamish-mckenzie#t=0) Introduction: Chris Best and Hamish McKenzie
- [4:42](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/how-i-built-this/2025-05-12-substack-chris-best-and-hamish-mckenzie#t=282) Chris Best's Background and the Rise and Fall of Kik
- [14:04](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/how-i-built-this/2025-05-12-substack-chris-best-and-hamish-mckenzie#t=844) Hamish McKenzie's Journey from Journalism to Tesla
- [24:45](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/how-i-built-this/2025-05-12-substack-chris-best-and-hamish-mckenzie#t=1485) The Origin Story: From Essay to Substack Idea
- [39:06](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/how-i-built-this/2025-05-12-substack-chris-best-and-hamish-mckenzie#t=2346) Early Validation, Y Combinator, and Business Model
- [52:36](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/how-i-built-this/2025-05-12-substack-chris-best-and-hamish-mckenzie#t=3156) Pandemic Growth and Free Speech Stance
- [1:03:41](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/how-i-built-this/2025-05-12-substack-chris-best-and-hamish-mckenzie#t=3821) Conflict with Elon Musk and the Notes Launch
- [1:11:07](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/how-i-built-this/2025-05-12-substack-chris-best-and-hamish-mckenzie#t=4267) Future Outlook and Lessons on Luck vs. Work

## Topics

- [Starting a product company](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/topic/starting-a-company)
- [Pricing, margins & unit economics](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/topic/pricing-and-unit-economics)
- [Direct-to-consumer & e-commerce](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/topic/direct-to-consumer)
- [Leadership, teams & culture](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/topic/leadership-and-culture)
- [Growth, exits & acquisitions](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/topic/growth-exits-and-acquisitions)
- [Marketing & brand](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/topic/marketing-and-brand)

## Most relevant to

companies scaling up

## Mentioned

- Kik Interactive (company)
- Blackberry (company)
- WhatsApp (product)
- Facebook (company)
- Twitter (company)
- X (company)
- Elon Musk (other)
- Y Combinator (company)
- Patreon (company)
- Medium (company)
- Ben Thompson (other)
- Stratechery (product)
- Bill Bishop (other)
- Andrew Sullivan (other)
- Matt Taibbi (other)
- Tesla (company)
- SpaceX (company)
- U.S. Bank (company)

## Related episodes from other shows

- [9: Asking for Money](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/thoroughly-considered/2016-02-21-9-asking-for-money) (Thoroughly Considered)
- [159: Build a Community to Sell Your New Product Invention](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/product-startup/2023-01-18-159-build-a-community-to-sell-your-new-product-invention) (Product Startup)
- [The Pilot: Unveiling the Blueprint of "The Builder Circle"](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/the-builder-circle/2023-05-13-the-pilot-unveiling-the-blueprint-of-the-builder-circle) (The Builder Circle)
- [Tool of the Week Segment | Episode 31](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/built-2-scale/2025-12-04-tool-of-the-week-segment-episode-31) (Built 2 Scale)
- [I'm Changing The Podcast](https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/lets-combinate/2026-08-18-im-changing-the-podcast) (Let's Combinate)

## Citing this page

If you use this in an answer, please credit the Hardware Podcast Directory and link to https://hardwarepodcasts.com/podcast/how-i-built-this/2025-05-12-substack-chris-best-and-hamish-mckenzie. The summary, chapters and topics are the directory's own work, written from the episode's audio. The episode itself, its title and its audio belong to How I Built This.