Last month, venture capitalist Balaji Srinivasan announced Network School, a three-month learning retreat aimed at people interested in “network nations,” a kind of utopia for the anarcho-capitalist sector. The inaugural class is 150 strong and starts today.
Details about the school have been shrouded in secrecy, even from applicants. Applicants to Network School made deposits of up to $2,000 without even knowing the location of the Network School. Srinivasan has yet to publicly reveal it, though social media posts and WIRED reports indicate it is located in Forest City, Malaysia.
The Red School is one of the most ambitious projects yet for those interested in creating what Srinivasan calls a “decentralized country.” The goal is for people dissatisfied with their own society to come together and create a movement that will create “parallel” societies — special economic zones that have alternative education systems, media and currency institutions, as well as wealth-friendly tax laws. A crucial step is having a physical territory, and the Red School overcomes that hurdle. On Sunday, Srinivasan said he is working to “build out the real estate space” with the goal of “growing the school.”
While Srinivasan has yet to publicly reveal the location of the Network School, he has been clearer about his values, which he says students should adhere to. Substack Release Introducing the Network School, these requirements include an admiration for “Western values,” seeing Bitcoin as the successor to the US Federal Reserve, and trusting AI over human courts and judges.
“It’s for those who believe in technology, harmony, internationalism, and capitalism,” Srinivasan’s post on Substack reads. “It’s for those who want Silicon Valley without San Francisco.”
Srinivasan added that the school is open to artists, athletes and technologists from any country.
On the school’s application, people are asked to rate a number of things in different categories on a scale of -10 (unfavorable) to +10 (favorable). Topics include “protocols” like Solana and Bitcoin maximalism, “politics” like Karl Marx and Jordan Peterson, “technology” like AI accelerationism and military technology, “places” like Dubai and Israel, “culture” like tattoos and traditional masculinity and femininity, “politics” like Drag Queen Story Hour and carbon credits, and “progress” like artificial general intelligence and space exploration.
On X and Reddit, several people said they had been accepted into Network School and had to pay the first month’s rent in advance within two business days of acceptance or risk losing their spot. The lack of time and not knowing exactly where they would be staying caused some people stress.
One tech worker who was accepted into Network School told WIRED that he strongly agrees with the school’s premise, but that sending money without knowing key details was going too far.
“I talked to some friends about it and they said, ‘Wow, that sounds really suspicious. ’ And I said, ‘Yeah, you’re right,’” said the applicant, who asked to remain anonymous for privacy reasons.
In terms of everyday life at the Net School, Srinivasan says in his Substack Release Students will solve daily problems in mini-classrooms. These will involve a mix of coding and social media posting, and they will earn “proof of learning” NFTs upon completion. Srinivasan says students can also compete for daily “crypto prizes” worth $1,000 “for open source projects, AI content creation, and microtasks.”