03/10/2026
The story of how Quora slowly destroyed itself.
Remember Quora in 2014?
It was one of the most fascinating places on the internet.
A Stanford professor explaining quantum physics.
A former Goldman Sachs analyst breaking down market crashes.
Historians answering questions about the Roman Empire with real sources.
You could ask a simple question like:
"Why did the Roman Empire fall?"
…and get a mini-thesis written by someone who actually studied it.
It felt like the world’s smartest people were all in one place.
Scrolling Quora back then was as addictive as Instagram Reels today.
But then… something changed.
Around 2017, the platform started filling with strange, low-quality questions:
• “What happens if you put pineapple on pizza in Italy?”
• “Why are Indians so smart?”
• “What photo deserves 10k upvotes?”
At the same time:
• Ads increased
• Users were paid to ask questions
• Quantity exploded… but quality collapsed
The thoughtful answers slowly disappeared.
Then by 2021, something interesting happened.
Whenever I Googled a problem, I started adding one word to the search:
“Reddit.”
Because Quora started locking answers behind logins and paywalls.
Meanwhile Reddit stayed open and raw.
Need relationship advice?
→ r/relationship_advice
Trying to understand crypto?
→ r/cryptocurrency
Learning to code?
→ r/programming
Real people.
Real experiences.
Real discussions.
Reddit felt human.
Quora started to feel manufactured.
And then ChatGPT arrived.
If people want quick answers today, they can ask AI.
What AI can’t replace easily is real community experience.
That’s why Reddit still feels irreplaceable.
But Quora?
Scroll the feed today and you’ll probably see:
"What is one photo that deserves 10k upvotes?"
Usually followed by a random meme.
A long way from the platform that once felt like the internet’s smartest classroom.
