Well, that doesn’t sound quite right either. It doesn’t really capture everything these brothers have accomplished. Let’s try this: Grant and Spencer Hilbert are farmers, gamers, risk-takers, builders, entrepreneurs, and dreamers.
That’s a lot, but in the case of these two young Iowa Staters, it pretty much covers it.
Here’s why: Grant (’20) and Spencer (’21) have burgeoning farm operations made possible with revenue generated from their successful YouTube video channels, which focus on farming.
REAPING VIRTUAL BENEFITS
The Hilberts are city boys, having grown up in Ankeny, just south of Ames. Their dad works in agribusiness and their mother in banking, which partially explains their predispositions to agriculture and finance.
While other young men may worship athletes, rock stars, and movie celebrities, Grant’s heroes have always been farmers. What really sparked the Hilberts’ interest in farming, especially with Grant, was the few weeks a year they spent as kids in northern Iowa helping at their grandparents’ farm.
“I don’t know if it’s in my blood or something I adopted from that experience, but I fell in love with farming,” Grant says. “It had appeal for me as a young kid — the big tractors, farrowing hogs and cattle, it was always fun being around there. It’s my passion.”
In 2014, Grant and a friend began creating YouTube videos featuring them playing popular video games like Grand Theft Auto and Call of Duty. They dubbed their channel The Squad just because it sounded cool. The channel took off and soon had more than 2,000 subscribers.
In a move that would change his life, Grant decided to mix his gaming hobby with his farm fandom and started creating videos of him playing a Farm Simulation game. His FarmSim gaming seemed to fill a niche, quickly finding an audience of viewers who were just as intrigued by tractors and swine as car chases and gun fights. He took over The Squad and the subscriber base exploded, currently hovering around 1.5 million.
Grant and Spencer both found success streaming FarmSim videos on YouTube. In 2020, Grant bought three farms located in Poweshiek and Mahaska counties. Spencer works alongside Grant at the farm, and purchased his own 50 acres in Story County. The brothers now document and share their real-life farming journey with their YouTube subscribers
BUYING THE FARM
Grant’s channel reached a level of viewership on YouTube that was generating steady income. At Iowa State, he realized that his lucrative hobby “could be a business, rather than just for fun.” He created what he calls a “four-year stride” plan and basically “locked myself down in my dorm room with the idea of grinding away and building something in my free time,” he says. He cranked out FarmSim videos, sacrificing the typical social life of a college student.
As his viewership and income grew in 2018, 2019, and 2020, he realized he needed to learn how to allocate that capital better. He soaked up financial advice from podcasts and books and began realizing bitcoin was an underestimated asset in the depths of bear markets.
He once imagined buying a farm in middle age but his virtual success meant his dream could become reality a lot sooner. Between his YouTube-generated capital and bank financing, in 2020, he eventually bought three farms located in Poweshiek and Mahaska counties, totaling 250 acres of tillable land and 40 acres of timber. He ultimately sold two tracts and used the proceeds to buy 125 acres in Story County, which is home to Ames and Iowa State. He aims to sell the last Poweshiek County farm with plans to expand his Story County holdings.
So how does virtual farming compare to doing it for real? There is no comparison, Grant says. He admits, though, that playing FarmSim fed his farming passion and “kept my mind in the farming world.”
While he spends a lot of time working his land, he still has a foothold in the virtual world. His YouTube videos have followed his farming adventures through 2021 when he was just getting started through 2022 when beans did better than corn, and then to 2023 when yields were fantastic.
“2022 was really rough on corn,” he says. “We pattern-tiled and that really improved the crop. I’m learning how to improve my farm through experience, through trial and error, and through talking to my neighbors and, of course, learning from the internet.”
WATCHING BIG BROTHER
Following his brother’s lead, Spencer got into FarmSimYouTube videos as well.
He also has built his own path, demonstrating his own financial skills and risk-taking. Spencer bought a house in Ames during his freshman year. He lived in it, rented it, and then sold it at a profit when the post-COVID market was stronger.
He now works alongside his brother at the farm, and recently bought his own 50 acres in Story County.
Spencer’s YouTube channel has nearly 120,000 subscribers. His videos track his farming experience, with particular focus on the financial ups and downs of the profession.
“I talk about exactly what I paid for the land and what the loan looks like,” he says. “What happened with corn and soybeans after the first full year. I own the land and want to be as transparent as possible. Am I making or losing money?”
While the business of farming remains an attraction, he did get more than 100,000 views for a video about a tractor rolling over.
Grant recently launched American Farming, pictured above, a game that allows people to create a personalized farming character, virtually plant and harvest crops, raise livestock, and buy equipment.
CREATING THE GAME
Iowa State places a strong emphasis on innovation and entrepreneurship. The Hilberts were entrepreneurs when they arrived on campus, but their Iowa State experiences have contributed to their success.
Grant found great value in his favorite class on farmland appraisal. He also took entrepreneurship classes that “made you think of ideas and about how you need to think when starting a business.”
His business-thinking goes beyond farming and related videos, too. He is now overseeing a software company that recently launched a game called American Farming. Gamers get to create their own farmer character; virtually plant and harvest crops; raise livestock; and buy equipment by brands like Case IH, Versatile, Unverferth, and many more that will be instantly familiar to anyone with an ag background.
“I saw a need in the mobile space for a game with a focus on American farming, so I started one,” Grant says. “It was one of the hardest things I have ever done, business-wise. I didn’t know anything about coding/development, so I hired eight artists and developers, some full time and some part time. It took us about three years to build.”
As they look to the future, the Hilbert brothers see more — buying more farms, harvesting more crops, creating more videos, and chasing more dreams.
