Home / Company / Discord

Discord

Last Updated August 12, 2025

Discord is a communications platform for voice, video, and text that supports communities, creators, and organizations. Founded in 2015 by Jason Citron and Stanislav Vishnevskiy, the company is based in San Francisco, California and offers a subscription product, Nitro, that adds optional features.
Company Overview: Discord
Discord offers a communications platform that supports real-time voice, video, and text for communities, creators, and organizations. The service includes moderation, roles, and developer integrations to support large and small groups. Discord operates within the social and collaboration software category.
Investment Highlights

Valuation & Growth

  • Valued at ~$15B in a 2021 fundraise and remained steady in subsequent years.
  • Revenue grew from $445M in 2022 to $575M in 2023, driven primarily by Nitro.
  • Nitro subscribers increased ~17% YoY to 7.3M by mid‑2025, generating ~$304M in pricing-driven revenue.

Funding History

  • Raised nearly $1B in private funding, from investors such as Greylock, Greenoaks, and Dragoneer.
  • Continued Product-led monetization with server boosts, Nitro upsells, and premium SDKs.

Major Revenue Lines

  • Nitro subscriptions: Core revenue driver, recent tier expansion and student discounts boosting adoption.
  • Nitro Boosts & perks: Enhancing community growth and engagement.
  • Game sales commission: ~10% cut from developer game transactions within servers.
  • Emerging ad revenue: Reward-based Video Quests and Game Quests in beta across mobile and desktop.
Product & Technology Leadership

Core Features

  • Voice & Video Chat: Spatial audio, real-time streaming, and screen sharing.
  • Text Channels & Forums: Structured discussions, threads, and themed boards.
  • Server Infrastructure: Organized spaces for communities with roles, moderation, and access controls.

Monetization & Premium Tools

  • Discord Nitro Plans: Offers HD streaming, 1GB uploads, avatars, server boosts, and custom perks.
  • Server Boosts: Used to unlock server enhancements across thousands of communities.
  • Quest-based ads: Rewarded viewing experiences (Video Quests) introduced mid‑2025, optionally shown.
 Market Position & Strategic Advantage

Global Impact & Communities

  • Supports over 28 million active servers globally, with millions of communities centered around interests like gaming, education, and NFTs.
  • Example: Midjourney server reached ~20M members.
  • Average user spends ~94 minutes per day on Discord—with high engagement in voice-based conversations.

Competitive Moats

  • Platform loyalty: High retention with 200M+ MAUs and strong brand stickiness among Gen Z.
  • Community-first monetization: Monetizes via subscriptions and perks—not ads, until recent curated rollout.
  • Product trust: Favorable stance against intrusive ads helps retain heavy usage patterns.
  • Network effects: Server-driven growth enables virality through invites and community sharing.
Financial Opportunity

Market Opportunity

  • Real-time communication and community platforms continue gaining in enterprise, education, gaming, and hobby spaces.
  • Nitro and rewarded advertising provide dual monetization paths.
  • Server boosts and in-app economies present strong upsell potential.

Growth Drivers

  • Continued Nitro feature expansion and boost engagement.
  • Scaled advertising via mobile Video Quests with low CPM targeting gamified audiences.
  • Preparation for IPO signals near-term capital and partnership expansion.
  • Enterprise and educational segment targeting via Nitro for Teams offering.

Revenue Streams

  • Subscription (Nitro) revenue via billed tiers.
  • Developer fees (games, server commerce, bots).
  • Monetized ad formats (Quests).
  • Server boost purchases and premium feature unlocks.
Key Stats

Founded: 2015

Total Raised: ~$1.02B

Valuation: ~$15B (2021 private round)

Monthly Active Users: ~200M (2023); ~231M in Q2 2025

Registered Users: ~560M (2023); estimated ~614M by mid‑2025

Nitro Subscribers: ~7.3M (mid‑2025)

Annual Revenue: $575M (2023); estimated ~$630M (2024); projected ~$561M from Nitro + mobile in 2025

Employees: ~870 (2025)

Headquarters: San Francisco, CA, USA

How Summit Ventures Works

Summit Ventures offers accredited investors exclusive access to shares in the secondary market, providing:

  • Network Access: Exposure to opportunities sourced through Summit’s
    relationships.
  • Market-Based Pricing: Valuations informed by current private-market activity.
  • Simplified Process: Streamlined subscription and administrative support.
  • Portfolio Exposure: Participation in select private technology companies.
Risk Disclaimer

Investment in private companies involves substantial risk and is suitable only for sophisticated investors who can bear the loss of their entire investment. Past performance is not indicative of future results.

About Discord

Discord enables users to create or join servers organized around interests, projects, and communities. Features include role-based permissions, channels for specific topics, moderation tools, and integrations that support real-time collaboration. Voice channels, video, screen sharing, and chat are designed to accommodate small groups and large communities.

Use extends beyond gaming to domains such as education, arts, and technology. The platform’s server structure allows communities to manage access, host events, and structure conversations by theme. Application programming interfaces and bot frameworks permit automation and custom workflows within servers.

Discord’s business model includes subscription plans (such as Nitro) that add capabilities like higher upload limits and enhanced media settings. The company publishes developer resources and trust and safety documentation outlining platform policies and enforcement mechanisms.

This profile is based on publicly available information and is provided for informational purposes only. Summit Ventures is not affiliated with Discord and does not offer or recommend securities; Summit Ventures facilitates introductions through a network of partners.