Substack Shifts Moderation Power to Creators with Reply Rules

When a reader attempts to comment on a post, Note, or Chat thread, they are now presented with the author's custom guidelines. While simple requests like "no AI slop" or "stay on topic" are the intended use cases, the system allows for any instruction a creator chooses to implement. This mechanism aims to curb noise and maintain editorial focus across the platform.

The feature functions as more than a simple display of text. Substack claims the system observes which replies a writer chooses to hide, using those actions to train an automated filter. Over time, the platform aims to proactively suppress comments that violate the established rules, potentially sparing high-traffic writers the manual labor of constant moderation. While technical specifics remain sparse, this integration suggests a push toward more sophisticated, automated community management for independent publishers.