What Works for Startups Like Yours?

Huberman Lab is a free educational podcast and content platform launched in January 2021 by neuroscientist and Stanford professor Andrew Huberman. Within 10 months of launch, the channel became one of the top 10 most popular podcasts globally, with the first video reaching 652,000 views and subsequent videos hitting 1+ million views. The growth was driven by consistent weekly content, word-of-mouth from major podcast appearances, and a commitment to free, science-backed health and wellness education.

Acquired is a long-form podcast launched in September 2019 by David Rosenthal and Ben Gilbert that tells the detailed histories of major tech companies and acquisitions. The show averages 200,000 downloads per episode across Spotify and RSS feeds, with a highly valuable audience composition of 40% C-level/VP executives, 23% current founders, and 12% former founders. The hosts intentionally avoid common podcasting strategies like short episode formats, weekly releases, and frequent guest appearances, instead focusing on deep-dive research and conversational storytelling that has grown steadily over 8 years with no viral moments.

The SaaS Podcast, hosted by Omar Khan since 2014, has become a go-to resource for founders building SaaS businesses. Now at episode 300, the podcast features interviews with proven founders and industry experts sharing strategies and insights. The show has built a strong community through consistent, valuable content and genuine storytelling that resonates with early-stage founders.

Morning Brew is a business news newsletter founded by Austin Rief in college. Built with authenticity as a core value rather than immediate monetization focus, the newsletter grew through word-of-mouth referrals and Twitter engagement, with subscribers becoming brand ambassadors for the product.

First customers: college network

Die Workwear is a Twitter/X account run by Derek, an anonymous menswear writer who has amassed over 1 million followers by teaching men about clothing as a social language. He makes his living writing about menswear and has built a massive audience by providing practical style advice, deep historical knowledge, and sharp critiques that help men gain confidence through better dressing. His growth has been driven primarily by viral Twitter content and word-of-mouth, establishing him as a credible voice on men's fashion accessible to everyday people.

How to Take Over the World is a podcast where Ben Wilson reads biographies of historical titans of industry and breaks down their strategies and mistakes into 2-3 hour episodes. The show gained significant traction through word-of-mouth and recognition from Sam Parr (First Million), eventually attracting attention from MrBeast who reached out for advice and mentorship conversations.

The Hustle is a podcast that has grown to 600,000 monthly listens, up from 430,000 the previous month. The hosts discuss entrepreneurship, business ideas, and startup trends while sharing various business insights and guest interviews with notable founders and investors.

The Hustle/The Move is a podcast created by entrepreneurs Sam Parr and Sean Cannell featuring unfiltered conversations about startups, business ideas, and market trends. With around 15 million downloads per year and aspiring to reach 100,000 daily listeners per episode, the show has built a loyal audience of engaged listeners who are inspired to start their own ventures based on ideas discussed on the podcast. The hosts leverage their existing networks and company exits (Sean sold to Twitch) to attract high-profile guests and have recently launched a venture fund to invest in companies featured or discussed on the show.

Travelfish is a content site providing Southeast Asia travel information that became highly respected among backpackers. The site achieved strong word-of-mouth traction, with travelers regularly visiting the site while in Bangkok cafes and sharing it across platforms like Facebook.