Indian-origin businessman buys island to build new country for techies, founders, creative thinkers

Former Coinbase CTO Balaji Srinivasan opened the 'Network School' on the private island last September. (Image credit: AFP)

An Indian-American entrepreneur has bought an island near Singapore to realise his dream of creating a new country that's mostly online, for people who start companies, tech experts, and creative thinkers. Balaji Srinivasan, the co-founder of Counsyl Inc. and former Coinbase CTO, believes online groups with shared beliefs could eventually get their own land and become recognised as real countries, TechCrunch reported.

And as an experiment to test the validity of his idea of a "Network State,"  Srinivasan has built "The Network School" on the island in September 2024. Digital creator Nick Peterson, who's part of the programme, showed a video tour of the island on Instagram and called it a "great place for fitness lovers and startup founders." He said students start their day with exercise and then learn about AI, technology, and other subjects.

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"I've been living in this real-life experiment called the Network School, run by Balaji Srinivasan, where we are kind of testing what creating a new nation would feel like," Peterson shared.

The Network School is a three-month programme where people live on the island. Its goal is to "make democracy better for the internet age" and help attendees improve "personally, physically, and professionally" by focusing on truth, health, and money. It brings together people who want to start companies and those who like fitness.

Srinivasan had previously stated that the school would feature lectures on topics like digital nomadism while offering meals designed by longevity-obsessed millionaire Bryan Johnson.

What is a Network State?

Srinivas defined it as an internet community that secures a physical location and “gains diplomatic recognition from pre-existing states”. The concept won over many from the libertarian subsection of Silicon Valley, TechCrunch reported. Srinivasan was praised by Marc Andreessen and Ethereum co-founder Vitalik Buterin and has inspired fellow crypto enthusiasts to start their own “network states.”

Announcing the successful purchase of the island, Srinivasan had excitedly announced on X: "We got an island. That's right. Through the power of Bitcoin, we now have a beautiful island near Singapore where we're building the Network School."