Abstract:
According to Business Insider, the well-known Silicon Valley venture capital firm Andreessen Horowitz (A16z) has supported the creation of a new for-profit academy called Horowitz Andreessen Academy, which has raised US$42 million and attracted executives and founders from OpenAI, NVIDIA, Microsoft, Meta, Stripe and other companies to join the mentor network. The college does not award traditional degrees and aims to cultivate business founders and product developers in the AI era.
The college’s “Founding Class Fellowship” is a one-year program that is scheduled to start in September 2027. The first batch will enroll about 50 students and will be tuition-free. The college said it plans to launch a two-year fee-paying program in 2028, with tuition levels comparable to elite private universities (subject to regulatory approval).
Silicon Valley has long promoted entrepreneurship among college dropouts, and now some well-known figures choose to run their own schools. Ben Horowitz said in a press release that the AI revolution will change employment just as the Industrial Revolution changed agricultural society. "The education methods of the Industrial Revolution era cannot be fully adapted to the AI revolution. Someone must create a way to train new talents. This is the purpose of our establishment of the academy." He added that this is not only our investment idea, but also "an investment in the future of the country."
Udemy co-founder Gagan Biyani serves as the college’s CEO, Marc Andreessen and A16z partner Erik Torenberg are board members, and Ben Horowitz is a co-founder. Located in San Francisco, the academy's curriculum includes short courses, structured work placements (co-ops) at partner technology companies, and independent projects (pursuits). According to the college’s website, students will study at the San Francisco campus from September to April of the following year, go abroad in May, and do internships from June to August. The college has not yet announced the specific location of its campus, nor has it been accredited, and does not issue degrees or college credits. The college's founders believe that San Francisco itself is its attraction because of its concentration of technology companies, investors, research labs and entrepreneurs.
San Francisco is the core of the global technology industry, and the college’s founder said the city itself is an attraction.
Who is teaching?
The college’s faculty is a major selling point. Marc Andreessen will teach "The Next Platform Shift" and Ben Horowitz will teach "Leading Companies Through Tough Times." OpenAI CEO Sam Altman will appear as a guest speaker, but will not teach regular courses; NVIDIA CEO Jen-Hsun Huang, Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella, etc. are also on the list of lecturers or guests.
The subject directions are relatively diverse: the AI direction includes Li Feifei and former Meta chief AI scientist Yang Likun; other directions include neuroscientist Andrew Huberman, longevity entrepreneur Bryan Johnson, former British government adviser Dominic Cummings, former U.S. Treasury Secretary Larry Summers, etc. In addition, 10 founding partners including OpenAI, Google, Meta, NVIDIA, Palantir, and Anduril will participate in course design and provide resources; recruitment partners such as Databricks, Kraken, and Flock Safety may provide internship and full-time job opportunities for students.
How to apply?
Applicants must complete high school or equivalent education before August 2027; current college students can also apply, but they cannot complete more than one year of full-time college courses. To apply, you need to submit a personal website showing your work, short videos, test scores and high school transcripts. The college said admissions will focus on "proof of work" rather than academic performance.
The deadline for early approval is November 5, 2026, and the results will be announced by the end of January 2027 at the latest; the deadline for regular approval is January 15, 2027. Tuition is free for the first class, but students need to bear their own living expenses such as food and accommodation in San Francisco. Some subsidies based on financial need may be provided. Participants will receive over $50,000 worth of computing resources and a $5,000 travel research budget.
Social reaction: Epic opportunity or doomed failure?
After the news was announced, reactions on social platform X were divided. Supporters say that today's young people will have "epic-level" educational opportunities; some netizens predict that admission to the college may be a better talent signal for 20-year-olds than a four-year university degree. Skeptics believe that all "college alternatives" will fail and advise against giving up admission to Harvard, Yale or Stanford for this purpose; others point out that AI has made it easier and cheaper to start a business at home, and that offline colleges charging elite private university tuition are unnecessary.
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