Write • Build • Scale How These Twin Brothers Built a 90,000+ Subscriber Substack (From Scratch)
Nov 3, 2025
Luis and Rui Sousa, co-founders of The AI Break, share their journey from side project to a thriving Substack with over 90,000 subscribers in under two years. They discuss the power of paid ads and how they reinvested profits to fuel growth. The brothers reveal their innovative monetization strategies, emphasizing the importance of credibility over pitching services. They also provide practical advice on using AI effectively and creating quality content, illustrating how to balance free access with paid offerings for maximum engagement.
AI Snips
Chapters
Transcript
Episode notes
Paid Ads + Substack Ecosystem Flywheel
- Paid ads plus Substack's internal ecosystem became their main growth flywheel.
- Recommendations and Notes now drive 40–50% of monthly growth for The AI Break.
Started As A Side Project After ChatGPT
- The AI Break began as a 2023 side project triggered by ChatGPT's rise and word-of-mouth.
- Early growth came from WhatsApp, Slack, and direct outreach to founders and CEOs.
Reinvest Newsletter Revenue Into Ads
- Reinvest early revenue from newsletters directly into paid acquisition to accelerate growth.
- Use those paid gains to scale the audience and feed more monetization options.