Network School

Network School has moved. Its Forest City campus in Malaysia was ordered to cease operations in July 2026 over licensing breaches, and Network School has since signed a five-year agreement to open a new campus in Kazakhstan. Details below reflect the Malaysian campus — confirm location, pricing, and cohort dates at ns.com before applying.

Balaji Srinivasan, the founder, frames it as a frontier community for techno-optimists.

Its members include remote workers, digital nomads, online creators, personal trainers, self-improvers, event organizers, and engineers of all stripes.

Network School v1 was announced in August 2024, pitching itself as a pioneer 3-month cohort to empower dark talent, and replace declining traditional universities with a cheaper, digital-first alternative. Inspired by Balaji's experiences teaching at Stanford, the original pop-up village ran from September to December 2024 in Forest City, Malaysia, following the Network State Conference.

After proving demand, by March 2025 it evolved into Network School v2, a year-round residency program with double the capacity, hosting ongoing cohorts, hundreds of speakers, high-profile events, and expanding facilities.

In parallel, the core team started building a permanent Network School campus around the same place, with the goal that it becomes the template for "franchising" and the launchpad for exogenous communities to emerge.

At its peak the community counted 400+ members from 70+ nationalities, having drawn over 4,000 applications from more than 80 countries for the 128 spots in that first v1 cohort. The Forest City campus closed in July 2026, and Network School is now setting up in Kazakhstan.

Network School ran from Forest City, Malaysia, a billionaire project in the Singapore-Johor Special Economic Zone, from 2024 until mid-2026. The campus included private rooms, gym, coworking spaces, and auditoriums.

Kazakhstan is now the main hub, with reporting pointing to the Astana International Financial Centre.

As per Network School's roadmap, future nodes will arise throughout the world, forming a decentralized yet unified community.

The first iteration (v1) of Network School lasted only 90 days, while (v2) ran for a full year, from March 2025 to March 2026, on rotating monthly cohorts.

Throughout both iterations, members joined for a minimum of 1 month and extended their stay on a monthly basis.

Network School costs $3,000/mo for a private room, or $1,500/mo with a roommate.

The goal at the Network School is to provide an all-inclusive society-as-a-service model so that members only worry about learning, burning, earning and having fun.

Amenities in Network School include:

• Serviced room.
• 3 nutritious meals (breakfast, lunch, dinner).
• 24/7 gym access.
• Fitness classes.
• 24/7 co-working access.
• Content studios.
• Maker space.
• High-speed Wi-Fi.
• Workshops, lectures, and events.

Founders and creators can apply for a fellowship of $100,000 in funding for a new or existing venture, with the core requirement being that they relocate to Network School campus for one year.

Applications are submitted via the form at ns.com/apply, requiring personal details, background, and motivation.

Batches are selected periodically, and membership cohorts start on the first of the month. No strict prerequisites apply, but priority goes to longer stays of techno-optimists with relevant skills in engineering, creation, or organization.

After being accepted, one must pay the first month's rent to validate their membership.

Applying through a member referral might strengthen the application.