What Puck does

Puck is a privately held, subscription-based digital media company founded in 2021 and headquartered in New York that publishes insider journalism for an audience of business professionals and executives. The company's core product is a portfolio of eight vertical newsletters and accompanying podcasts covering Hollywood, Wall Street, Washington, AI, Media, Fashion, Sports, and Art — including branded franchises such as 'What I'm Hearing' (Matthew Belloni), 'Dry Powder' (William D. Cohan), 'The Best & The Brightest', 'Wall Power', 'Line Sheet', 'In the Room' (Dylan Byers), and 'The Varsity' (John Ourand). Content is delivered primarily via email and podcast/audio distribution through Apple's podcast and News platforms, with additional video distribution through a partnership with NESN for The Varsity.

The underlying technology is a relatively standard newsletter and podcast publishing stack centered on a proprietary editorial CMS and email delivery system, with no publicly disclosed AI/ML platform layer, mobile app, or third-party integrations. Distribution extensions include Apple Podcasts/News and NESN streaming. Puck has acquired Air Mail (Graydon Carter's luxury newsletter, completed October 2025 for $16 million) and Artelligence (a Substack newsletter on the global art market, acquired April 2024), inheriting editorial teams, archives, and subscriber bases.

Puck's business model is subscription-recurring at its core, supplemented by premium advertising and sponsorships targeting executives in finance, media, and entertainment. The company reports approximately 100,000 paying subscribers across Puck and Air Mail combined, and CEO Sarah Personette has publicly cited 40% total revenue growth and 50% subscription revenue growth year-over-year. Puck differentiates operationally through a talent-led model in which journalists receive equity and revenue share tied to subscriber growth and retention, and pricing is offered behind a 14-day free trial.

Name

Puck

Legal name

Heat Media

Website

https://puck.news

Company type

Private

Founded year

2021

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

51–100 employees

Short description

Puck is a subscription digital media company publishing insider newsletters and podcasts across Hollywood, Wall Street, Washington, AI, Media, Fashion, Sports, and Art for an audience of executives and business professionals, monetizing through recurring subscriptions plus premium advertising.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Premium Digital Newsletter Media

NAICS

Periodical Publishers (51312), Newspaper Publishers (513110), Newspaper, Periodical, Book, and Directory Publishers (5131)

SIC

Periodicals: Publishing Or Publishing & Printing (2721)

akta.pro primary industry

Newsletters & Email-Based News Publishers (B2B/B2C) (MPAJADAJ)

akta.pro secondary industries

Publishing Networks & Multi-Author Publications (MPACAIAG), Business, Financial & Trade News Publishers (MPAJADAC), Digital Magazine & Newspaper Subscription Platforms (Paywalls, Membership) (MPAJAMAD), Business, Finance & Industry Trade Magazines (MPAJAEAM)

Keywords

• Premium newsletter journalism
• Subscription digital media
• Vertical insider news
• Business executive news
• Podcast journalism platform

Headquarters

HQ city

New York

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Markets served

GTM type

B2C

Offering type

Digital Commerce or Content

Cost components

Personnel, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales, Operations

Revenue model

1. Subscription Revenue: Puck generates revenue primarily through subscriptions, offering approximately 100,000 paying subscribers access to insider journalism across multiple verticals including Hollywood, Wall Street, Washington, AI, Fashion, Sports, and Art.
2. Advertising/Sponsorships: Premium advertising opportunities targeting high-value business professionals and executives interested in finance, media, and entertainment industries.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels3 records

Marketing channels4 records

Core offering

Puck publishes a portfolio of premium, subscription-based email newsletters and podcasts delivering insider journalism across eight verticals: Hollywood (entertainment), Wall Street (finance), Washington (politics), AI (technology), Media, Fashion, Sports, and Art. Content is anchored by named veteran journalists who hold equity and revenue share in the company, and is delivered to approximately 100,000 paying subscribers through a freemium subscription model with a 14-day free trial.

Product overview

Puck is a premium newsletter media company offering a portfolio of specialized vertical newsletters and podcasts covering entertainment (Hollywood), finance (Wall Street), politics (Washington), technology (A.I.), media industry, fashion, sports, and art markets. The platform operates multiple named newsletter products (What I'm Hearing, Dry Powder, Wall Power, The Best & The Brightest, Line Sheet) and podcasts (In the Room, The Varsity), delivering insider journalism through a subscription model. Puck's content franchises are anchored by prominent journalists who receive equity and revenue share tied to subscriber growth. The company has expanded through acquisitions of Air Mail (Graydon Carter's venture, October 2025) and Artelligence (a Substack newsletter on the global art market, April 2024), growing to approximately 100,000 paying subscribers.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Air Mail: High-end luxury digital newsletter acquired from Graydon Carter in October 2025, covering power and glamour topics.
• Artelligence

Products and services

• What I'm Hearing Essential insider-friendly Hollywood tip sheet from Matthew Belloni, with contributions from Kim Masters, Julia Alexander, Eriq Gardner, and Scott Mendelson covering entertainment industry news; published Monday, Tuesday, and Thursday for Puck subscribers.
• Dry Powder Wall Street-focused newsletter by William D. Cohan providing unique and privileged insight into the private conversations taking place inside boardrooms and corner offices; published Wednesday and Sunday.
• The Best & The Brightest Daily political newsletter from Washington covering the White House, Pentagon, Capitol Hill, K Street, and the campaign trail, featuring Leigh Ann Caldwell, Peter Hamby, Julia Ioffe, and others.
• Wall Power Puck's daily art market email anchored by Marion Maneker, offering unparalleled access to mega-auctions, galleries, elite buyers and sellers, and the power players of the art world; published Sunday, Tuesday, Wednesday, and Friday (Wednesday is an Inner Circle exclusive).
• Line Sheet Fashion industry bible covering all aspects of the business, anchored by Lauren Sherman with contributions from Rachel Strugatz on beauty and Malique Morris on retail.
• In the Room Media industry podcast hosted by Dylan Byers and Julia Alexander covering the biggest stories in media, tech giants, and streaming, distributed through Puck and podcast platforms.
• The Varsity Sports business podcast with John Ourand covering leagues, agencies, media deals, and the sports legal beat with Eriq Gardner; distributed via Puck, Apple Podcasts, and a streaming video format in partnership with NESN.
• Air Mail High-end luxury newsletter venture originally founded by Graydon Carter (former Vanity Fair editor), covering power and glamour topics with premium advertisers and a high-net-worth subscriber base; now wholly owned by Puck.
• Artelligence Substack newsletter focused on the global art market, acquired and integrated into Puck's Wall Power vertical as wholly owned subsidiary.

Quantifiable outcome

• 40% revenue growth reported by CEO
• +2 more outcomes

Named customers1 record

Segments2 records

Ideal customer profiles2 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Partnerships

Four partnerships are on record, tiered minor and core.

• NESNminorGTM or Marketing Partner · 1 November 2025NESN regional sports network partnered with Puck for 'The Varsity' video podcast on streaming platforms, covering sports business and media deals.
• Air MailcoreStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 October 2025Puck acquired Air Mail, a high-end newsletter founded by Graydon Carter (former Vanity Fair editor), combining luxury journalism and advertisers with Puck's established portfolio of writers and subscriber engagement. Graydon Carter stepped down following the acquisition.
• NESNminorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ Distributor · 1 June 2025Puck's new CRO Liz Gough focuses on unique, in-depth journalism for sustainable growth, emphasizing niche reporting to attract advertisers through partnerships with sports media.
• ArtelligenceminorStrategic or Co-development Partner · 1 April 2024Puck acquired Artelligence, a Substack newsletter focusing on the global art market. This acquisition expanded Puck's coverage into the art market vertical.

Scale indicators5 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights5 records

Direct peers

• Morning Brew: Morning Brew is a leading newsletter media company that built a large subscriber base through email-delivered business news, later expanding into paid subscriptions and adjacent verticals (like Marketing Brew). It is comparable to Puck in its newsletter-first distribution model and professional audience targeting.
• Business of Fashion: Business of Fashion is a subscription-based B2B media company providing insider fashion industry analysis. It is comparable to Puck's Line Sheet newsletter (anchored by Lauren Sherman, a former BoF executive) in covering fashion industry insiders with a paid subscription model.
• The Information: The Information is a premium subscription-based digital media company focused on tech, business, and insider journalism with a paywall model. It is highly comparable to Puck as both target high-level professionals with vertical-specific insider reporting and operate similar subscription-first business models.
• Substack: Substack is the dominant newsletter publishing platform enabling individual writers to monetize directly via subscriptions. It is comparable to Puck because both operate in the subscription newsletter economy, though Substack is a platform/marketplace while Puck is an integrated publisher — and Puck's acquisition of Artelligence (originally a Substack) illustrates the competitive dynamic.
• Semafor: Semafor is a digital news startup founded by veteran media executives (Ben Smith, Justin Smith) targeting global business and political news through a subscription-supported model. It is directly comparable to Puck in targeting professional readers with insider news and a digital-first subscription approach.
• Punchbowl News: Punchbowl News is a subscription-based insider politics newsletter founded by former Politico journalists, covering Capitol Hill and Washington power corridors. It is closely comparable to Puck's Washington franchise in audience, content format, and subscription business model.
• The Athletic: The Athletic is a subscription-based vertical sports media company that built a large paid subscriber base through deep, expert reporting. It is comparable to Puck's sports franchise (The Varsity with John Ourand) in monetizing vertical-specific insider sports journalism via subscription.

Broad incumbents

• Politico: Politico is an established political journalism outlet covering Washington power corridors with a subscription-supported model. It is comparable to Puck's Washington franchise (The Best & The Brightest) in targeting political insiders, and its former journalists (Dylan Byers, Leigh Ann Caldwell) anchor Puck's political coverage.
• Vanity Fair: Vanity Fair is a legacy Condé Nast publication covering culture, entertainment, and power — the prior professional home of Air Mail founder Graydon Carter. It is relevant context for Puck as a comparable premium media brand targeting similar high-end audiences, and as the legacy benchmark against which Air Mail was positioned.
• Axios: Axios is a digital media company that pioneered the 'Smart Brevity' newsletter format covering politics, business, and tech for professional audiences. It is broadly comparable to Puck in newsletter-first distribution and professional audience, though Axios operates at greater scale across more topics.

Market position

Strengths4 records

Weaknesses4 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/puck-news
• Xx.com/PuckNews
• Instagraminstagram.com/pucknews

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles5 records

Subsidiaries2 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds2 records

Investors3 records

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A2 records

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Puck