Hamish McKenzie
Co-founder and Chief Writing Officer of Substack. Journalist and author of Insane Mode, the Tesla story. Former lead writer for Tesla and editorial advisor at Kik.
Hamish McKenzie's Bio
Hamish McKenzie is the co-founder and Chief Writing Officer of Substack, the subscription publishing platform he started with Chris Best and Jairaj Sethi in 2017.
A New Zealand-born journalist and writer, McKenzie previously served as an editorial advisor at Kik Interactive and as the lead writer for Tesla, where he covered the company's early electric-vehicle revolution. He is the author of Insane Mode: How Elon Musk's Tesla Sparked an Electric Revolution to End the Age of Oil, a book that chronicles the disruptive forces behind the global shift to electric vehicles.
At Substack, McKenzie has helped shape the platform's writer-first philosophy, advocating for independent creators who want to build sustainable businesses without algorithmic dependency. He has appeared on stages including TED and has been featured in publications discussing the future of media, social platforms, and the economics of independent writing.
Career Timeline
2013 — Tech Reporter at PandoDaily
Worked as a tech reporter at PandoDaily, covering startups and Silicon Valley before co-founding Substack.
2017 — Co-founded Substack
Co-founded Substack with Chris Best and Jairaj Sethi, creating a platform that lets writers build paid newsletters directly with their audience.
2018 — Published Insane Mode
Released Insane Mode: How Elon Musk's Tesla Sparked an Electric Revolution to End the Age of Oil, drawing on his time as Tesla's lead writer.
2020 — Chief Writing Officer at Substack
Serves as Substack's Chief Writing Officer, shaping the platform's editorial philosophy and supporting independent writers.
