Why Big Tech is Buying Communities Instead of Building Them

Why HubSpot Invested $27M in The Hustle's Community Magic

Sam Parr's phone buzzed one morning in early 2021. On the other end was Dharmesh Shah, CTO of HubSpot, with an intriguing proposition: HubSpot wanted to acquire The Hustle, the vibrant business community Sam had built from scratch over the previous six years. The price tag? A cool $27 million.

This wasn't just another tech acquisition. It was a testament to a profound truth in today's digital landscape: authentic communities are nearly impossible to manufacture but invaluable to own.

Midjourney prompt: papercraft illustration of a large corporate hand gently holding a glowing community of interconnected paper people, minimalist origami style, white and blue corporate colors, layered paper art, clean design, depth through paper layers, subtle shadows, crisp edges, tech company aesthetic meets human warmth, professional infographic style --ar 16:9 --v 5

The Community Conundrum

Picture this: You're a tech executive with virtually unlimited resources. You have world-class engineers, cutting-edge technology, and a massive marketing budget. It should be easy to build a thriving community.

Wrong.

Just ask the graveyard of failed corporate community initiatives. The harsh reality? You can't engineer authenticity. You can't force the connection. And you certainly can't rush trust.

This is why tech giants increasingly reach for their checkbooks instead of building tools.