Substack, a platform best known for its newsletter-driven creator economy, is expanding its ambitions beyond the written word with the launch of a new TV app for Apple TV and Google TV. The move marks a significant step in the company’s gradual pivot toward video and livestreaming, positioning Substack more directly against platforms like YouTube, Patreon, and other creator-first media ecosystems.
Announced on Thursday, the TV app is currently available in beta and allows subscribers to watch video posts and livestreams created by authors on the Substack platform directly on their televisions. The company says the app is designed to give long-form video content a more natural home, encouraging lean-back viewing rather than short, scroll-driven consumption on mobile devices.
At launch, the Substack TV app features a TikTok-style “For You” row that surfaces recommended videos from creators users already follow, alongside broader discovery-driven recommendations. Both free and paid subscribers can access the app, though the level of content available depends on their subscription tier. Substack also revealed plans to introduce previews of paid video content for free subscribers, a move aimed at driving conversion without fully gating discovery.
Beyond its initial release, the company has outlined an ambitious roadmap for the TV app. Planned updates include support for audio posts and read-alouds, improved search and discovery tools, in-app upgrades to paid subscriptions, and dedicated publication hubs where subscribers can browse all video content from a specific creator. These additions suggest Substack is attempting to recreate the depth of its newsletter experience in a video-first environment.
The TV app launch comes amid a broader shift in Substack’s product strategy. While the platform built its reputation as a haven for long-form writing and independent journalism, it has steadily invested in video over the past several years. Substack first introduced video posts in 2022, followed by video monetisation tools in early 2024. Around the same time, livestreaming capabilities were rolled out to all publishers, allowing creators to host real-time conversations, interviews, and events directly within the platform.
In March 2025, Substack doubled down on short-form video with the introduction of a TikTok-like video feed inside its mobile app, signalling a clear intent to compete for audience attention in formats increasingly favoured by creators and consumers alike. The TV app appears to be a natural extension of that strategy, moving Substack’s video content from phones and laptops into the living room.
In a blog post announcing the launch, the company framed the TV app as an evolution rather than a departure from its core identity. “Substack is the home for the best longform—work creators put real care into and subscribers choose to spend time with,” the company wrote. “Now these thought-provoking videos and livestreams have a natural home on the TV, where subscribers can settle in for the extended viewing that great video deserves.”
However, not all users are convinced. Reactions to the announcement reveal a degree of tension within Substack’s community, particularly among writers who see the platform’s expansion into video as a potential dilution of its original mission. One of the most upvoted comments on the blog post reads, “Please don’t do this. This is not YouTube. Elevate the written word.” Another commenter questioned whether the shift reflects creative evolution or investor pressure, noting that Substack’s messaging appears to be moving away from writing-first values.
These concerns highlight a broader challenge facing creator platforms: balancing growth and diversification without alienating core users. As audience attention fragments across formats and devices, platforms are increasingly forced to follow consumption habits rather than shape them. For Substack, the push into TV and video may be less about abandoning writing and more about ensuring creators can reach audiences wherever they choose to engage.
Substack is also not alone in targeting the living room. Social platforms are increasingly exploring TV as a new distribution channel for creator content. Instagram recently launched “IG for TV,” a new experience that allows users to watch Reels on television screens, starting with Amazon Fire TV. The move reflects a wider industry trend in which short-form and creator-led video is no longer confined to mobile devices.
For creators, Substack’s TV app could open new opportunities for deeper engagement and higher-value content, particularly for those already producing podcasts, video essays, interviews, and livestreams. For the platform, it represents another bet on becoming a multi-format home for independent creators rather than a single-medium publishing tool.
Whether Substack can expand into video and TV without losing the trust of its writing-focused community remains an open question. What is clear, however, is that the platform is no longer content to remain a newsletter company alone. As creator platforms continue to converge across text, audio, and video, Substack’s TV app signals its intent to compete not just on format, but on where and how audiences choose to spend their time.
