/startuppedia/media/media_files/2025/07/03/whatsapp-image-2-2025-07-03-14-17-11.jpeg)
Balaji Srinivasan buys private island to build new nation for techies and founders
An Indian-origin tech entrepreneur, Balaji Srinivasan, bought a private island near Singapore to build what he calls a “Network State”, a decentralised, digital-first society for techies, creators, and founders. The project, though, sounds like a futuristic thought experiment, is now becoming true on a real island with real people, as reported by TechCrunch.
Tech entrepreneur posts 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,” Srinivasan posted on X.
The tech entrepreneur’s island homes, ‘The Network School’, is a three-month residential programme that merges entrepreneurship, emerging tech, and personal transformation.
Participants are handpicked for the program based on their ambition and unconventional thinking. From gym sessions to workshops on artificial intelligence, blockchain, and startup innovation, ‘The Network School’ is a complete package.
Srinivasan’s long-term goal is to build a borderless, crowd-funded nation for digital nomads and tech-savvy changemakers.
He outlined the concept in his 2022 book, The Network State.
The techie claims to create self-improving communities that first exist online, then have physical territory, eventually attaining global recognition.
One participant, content creator Nick Peterson, shared a virtual tour of the island, remarking it is “an oasis for gym rats and startup founders.”
He added, “I’ve been living in this real-life experiment called the Network School, where we are kind of testing what creating a new nation would feel like.”
Srinivasan claims his school is designed to foster “win-and-help-win” societies focused on truth, health, and wealth. The island curriculum is deeply rooted in a broader mission to review governance in the digital age.
Who is Balaji Srinivasan?
Tamil-origin 44-year-old Balaji Srinivasan holds multiple degrees in Electrical and Chemical Engineering from Stanford University.
He is a former CTO of Coinbase and co-founder of multiple Silicon Valley ventures. Over the past two decades, he has co-founded and backed several high-profile tech ventures, including Counsyl, Earn.com, and Teleport.
He invested early in Bitcoin, Ethereum, OpenSea, and Alchemy.
In 2024, Balaji Srinivasan launched the first Network School on this Southeast Asian island, with future campuses planned for Dubai, Tokyo, and Miami.
“We’re looking for remote workers, digital creators, personal trainers, developers — people who want to earn crypto, build things, burn calories, and have fun,” he said in a recruitment post.
/filters:format(webp)/startuppedia/media/media_files/2025/06/20/learn-how-to-start-indoor-button-mushroom-farming-click-here-to-know-more-2-2025-06-20-15-33-42.png)