Exploring the Stanford 2.0 Network School: Spending $1,000 a day, with an acceptance rate of 5%

Source: Star Ruby, Day 1 global Web3 brand manager

Compiled by: Jaleel, BlockBeats

This article is transcribed from the podcast Day 1 global (Born Global) E 20, which is dedicated to exploring how to create super individuals in the era of globalization and discussing cutting-edge innovative concepts and practices. The host Star has 10+ years of experience as a user product manager, with skills spanning content communities, e-commerce platforms and artificial intelligence, and is exploring how to become a super individual in the era of globalization. The host Ruby has 10+ years of experience in Internet operations and has worked in many technology companies such as Amazon.

This podcast episode focuses on the Network School project initiated by Balaji Srinivasan. Balaji is a Stanford PhD, former Coinbase CTO and former A16z partner. He is a top angel investor in the Web3 field. He published the book The Network State in July 2022, vigorously promoting the concept of network state. Related reading: Meet Balaji Srinivasan, the father of BUIDL, an eagle-eyed investor in the crypto field

As an experiment of the concept of network nation, Balaji launched the first three-month innovative school called The Network School near Singapore, dedicated to providing development opportunities for Dark Talent (young talents with talents who are on the margins and not noticed by the mainstream world) from all over the world. The Network School will focus on four core directions: Learn, Burn, Earn and Fun:

Balaji expressed the hope that this school will become a true Stanford 2.0. The schools first three-month semester will be held from September 23 to December 23 this year. Enrollment requires rent. The monthly rent is US$1,000 (two people sharing a room) and US$2,000 (renting alone). Students can also apply for short-term rentals. The rent includes an air-conditioned room located on a scenic island, equipped with internet, gym, and access to all courses and community services. Currently, The Network School has attracted innovative individuals from all over the world, with 150 students.

In this episode, hosts Star and Ruby talk to three guests, Camellia, Twone and Arvin, to discuss their experiences and insights. BlockBeats has compiled the original podcast as follows:

Host Star: If you know anything about digital nomads, innovative education or cryptocurrency, you may have heard about Network School recently. This school is located in Johor Bahru, Malaysia, and was initiated by Balaji Srinivasan, a well-known Silicon Valley entrepreneur, former CTO of Coinbase, and former A16Z partner. He proposed the concept of network country with the intention of breaking through geographical boundaries, connecting innovators around the world through the Internet, and creating a new society that is not bound by the traditional national system. And Network School is the core practice of his educational philosophy. This school is called Stanford 2.0, which provides learning opportunities for Dark Talent who do not belong to the traditional system but have great potential, breaking the threshold and form of traditional education.

Moderator Ruby: The first phase of Network School received more than 3,000 applications from more than 100 countries, and finally admitted less than 150 people, which is comparable to the admission rate of Stanford University. This project not only attracts various professional talents, but also brings together students from different fields and age groups. Surprisingly, these students range from US soldiers to university professors, and their ages range from 20 to over 50.

Host Star: We are very lucky to have three friends who have enrolled, Camellia, Twone and Arvin. All three guests have amazing backgrounds: Camellia is a global nomadic bilingual content creator, Twone has made outstanding contributions in the field of design, and Arvin is active in the research and practice of DAO and cryptoeconomics.

Moderator Ruby: During our conversation, several guests shared their unique application process, and one guest even passed the application with just three sentences. The learning format of Network School is also very unique. In addition to academic courses, free fitness training and healthy meals are provided every day. The education here is not only the imparting of knowledge, but also the comprehensive cultivation of global thinking, community cooperation and personal growth.

Host Star: What is particularly impressive is that this school is not limited to a certain country or culture, it is truly global. Our guests also shared their nomadic lives in Argentina, Portugal and other places, showing how to balance study and life in the context of globalization.

Network School model and guest background

Host Ruby: Now we are officially starting the recording of this exciting and lively podcast. We have invited three friends. Please introduce yourselves first.

Camellia: Hello, everyone. I’m Camellia Yixuan. I’m a bilingual creator with a Chinese media brand Ideal Village and an English media brand Chiwi Journal. I’m also a business consultant, providing marketing and content production consulting services to startups and technology companies.

Twone: Hello everyone, I am Twone. I am the former manager of Uncommons and a member of the GCC Community Investment Committee. I have also made many contributions to DeSci. I am a member of the working group of Gitcoin DeSci group and a multi-signature holder of DeSci Asia. Before entering Crypto, I worked as a PM in a large Internet company. I like writing and small animals, and I also like game programming.

Arvin: Hello everyone, my name is Arvin. I have contributed to and founded various types of DAOs before, and have also tried on-chain governance and token economics. Now I am a product manager and project manager. I like to bring everyone together to do things. That is because I like the idea of The Network School. I personally have a vague dream, which is to connect everyone, a bit like Sam Porter Bridges, the protagonist of the game Death Stranding, connect everyone.

Host Star: Welcome. All three of you have attended Network School. Although Balaji wrote a long article to introduce it, I would like to hear your personal experience. For example, if you were to introduce it to your friends, whether they are Crypro or non-Crypro friends, how would you describe this school in one sentence?

Camellia: Before, when I introduced it to my friends who were not working in technology companies, like my parents or some friends around me, I told them that I was going to a place for future education, focusing on studying what our future education model would be, and focusing on your physical health, with a sense of the future, so that they could experience it. If I told people in technology companies who are more familiar with the Crypto field, they would know Balaji when they were mentioned. So I said I was going to study at a prototype of his cyber nation.

Twone: I think this is more like a network nation, a small social experiment in physics. There were actually quite a lot of applicants this time, but only 150 people were recruited, which is the Dunbar number. The Dunbar number is also called the 150 law, which refers to the upper limit of the number of people a person can maintain close interpersonal relationships. In the end, these 150 people have backgrounds in Starup startups, technology companies, etc. Everyone comes together with very diverse backgrounds, and they learn more from each other and explore a future social form together. So I would say that Network School is more of a learning social experiment of exploration, co-creation, and constant self-challenge.

Arvin: I think if I have to summarize it in one sentence, for people in the Crypto circle, this project is to let us see how these different fields will blend when decentralized technology encounters real-life politics, human life and culture. For people outside the Crypto circle, this can be an experience to feel how a different school or society operates and what this self-organization process is like. The most interesting thing about this event for me personally is that everyone came here because of Balaji. This is a very critical point. Its like a social network graph, and Balaji, as one of the nodes, radiates and affects people from all kinds of backgrounds. Therefore, the people who come here are very diverse. I think this is actually an interesting experiment in the integration of decentralized technology and different fields to see what kind of chemical reaction Network School can stimulate.

Ruby: Did Balaji mention the goal of this Network School experiment at the opening ceremony or the beginning of the school? The first phase is 90 days long. What is the goal? What was the situation like on the first day?

Twone: We enrolled on Monday, and that day was mainly to deal with some tedious check-in procedures, so the formal introduction and sharing was on the next day, which was Tuesday. That day we had a relatively long sharing session, introducing the concept of Network State, which was mentioned in his previous book, and how this concept was implemented in the network school.

Balajis sharing at the opening ceremony, source: Twone

Camellia: He mentioned it in the enrollment brochure before. The core concept of the school is learning, exercising, making money and having fun, mainly to encourage everyone to develop themselves. In this atmosphere, everyone has to connect and interact on their own. It has only been about a week since the start of school, and there have been seven or eight spontaneously organized activities, such as introducing what cryptocurrency is, how to make AI movies, NFT-related knowledge, and some sports activities. Those who can enter this school have strong subjective initiative, and the school encourages everyone to explore and develop themselves.

Arvin: Following Camellias point, I feel that the school places special emphasis on self-policy, that is, everyone is responsible for their own growth, which is a very important ability. In other words, Network School is actually trying to rebuild a brand new school system. They believe that the American university system has collapsed, so the goal of Network School is to reshape a university model suitable for contemporary young people and provide a brand new educational opportunity for people in their 20s.

Twone: Just like when Bitcoin was first created, no one thought that sovereign states would recognize it. Just like Balaji said in the very first introduction to Network School, Bitcoin gave us this opportunity to own this island to practice this network school. In fact, most countries except China and the United States are small countries, so he said that we can first build a Vatican with a scale of 800 people, then develop to 11,000 people, and finally reach a large scale of 100,000 or 1 million people after 10 years of development. In this way, we can cultivate generations of the most outstanding entrepreneurs to promote the form of the network state to the next chapter.

Host Ruby: Yes, I think what impressed me most is that their philosophy is not a zero-sum game. They are not thinking about reforming the existing system, but they think that if the existing system is not good, then just create a new one. This is like Satoshi Nakamoto inventing Bitcoin. He was dissatisfied with the system of sovereign countries such as the Federal Reserve, but he did not directly confront it, but created something completely new. If the existing education system is not fair enough and cannot stimulate creativity, then it is better to create a new school.

Arvin: This morning when I was chatting with one of the students, he mentioned a metaphor that Balaji often uses, which I found very interesting. He said that the current political situation in America is like a clapping game, with one hand on top and one hand on the bottom. Today the Democrats are on the bottom, tomorrow the Republicans are on the top, and it goes back and forth. But the philosophy of Network School is, OK, I dont play your game. They opened a new track, and as you just said, it is a completely different way of playing.

Application process and pace of life

Host Star: How did you first know about this school and how did you apply?

Camellia: I have been following Balaji for a long time. I first heard him on Tim Ferriss podcast. He did a very long show at that time, which was more than four hours long. Then I started following him. He later established a community called 1729 and issued many tasks. If you completed the tasks, he would reward you with Bitcoin. So I participated in many activities at that time. Later, he established a Discord community, which was an early version of Network School. At first, he only recruited 150 people, but now the Discord community has more than 800 people.

When he released the Network School brochure, he first posted it in the Discord community, and then released some information on public channels. I clicked on the application page and found it very interesting, so I wrote an application. The application was probably only three sentences. I said, I have been following you for a long time, and I believe you know my name. Because I have participated in some of his activities in Discord before, for example, Balaji did a lot of online classes before writing books, and then people like us could ask him questions, so we would also have one-on-one conversations with him. When he published the book Network Nation, I also proposed to translate it for him, but it was translated by others first.

So I thought he should remember me. I don’t know who reviews these applications, but after writing them, I felt a little regretful, thinking, oh no, so many people applied, I only wrote three sentences, will I be accepted?

Twone: I first saw Balajis Twitter. At that time, I was still in Argentina and had a time difference. I told Arvin about it first and asked him to apply first. The next day, I clicked on the link and found that in addition to filling in some basic information, there was only one question on the application form: Why do you want to apply for Network School? I spent about an hour writing the reason for my application. Three days later, I received an email saying that my application was accepted and that I was one of the first students. Because I have studied in China, the United States, and Hong Kong, my background is quite diverse, which may be one of the reasons why they admitted me. Another point is that this batch of applicants is said to prefer creators. I continue to write myself, which may be similar to Camellia, so they may pay special attention to the content output of applicants when screening.

Arvin: I started following Balaji after reading his book Network State. Later, I saw the job postings he posted, looking for writers, founders, and coaches. I am also a founder, so I mainly talked about my experience and background on the application form.

Host Ruby: Will there be people like career coaches in Network School? For example, life coaches?

Twone: Yes, actually Balaji will communicate with everyone very seriously. Yesterday he had a long one-on-one communication with one of our friends, about four hours. When we introduced ourselves on Discord before, he would read everyones introduction, and then find each person to communicate face to face, saying I have read your introduction, and know what your interests and background are. His knowledge reserve is very rich.

Arvin: Life Coach is more like a spiritual mentor, and also a physical coach. For example, we have Burn exercise every morning, which is mainly for fat burning and fitness. So the school does need a lot of fitness coaches, and there is a shortage of them now.

Host Ruby: Bryan Johnson has also come here to share his experiences. Will he stay here for a long time, or just for a few days to share some courses?

BlockBeats Note: Bryan is an American entrepreneur, venture capitalist, writer, and author who proposed a new anti-aging experimental project called Project Blueprint in 2021 and has received a series of plasma transfusions, one of which was donated by his son.

Twone: His son will live here for a long time. Bryan himself is very busy, so he only comes occasionally. His team provides us with Blueprint, such as health plans and physical tests. We just did Longevity Test this afternoon and are still testing the App they developed. It is in the TestFlight stage. It is estimated that there will be more attempts or tests and experiments in the next 90 days.

Host Ruby: Can you explain the Longevity Test part in detail?

Twone: We just finished the Longevity Test today, which mainly records everyones physical test data. Because the App has not been officially launched yet, there is no score yet, but everyones results will be counted. They also mentioned the Blueprint Test, learning test, sleep test, etc. There is also a special sub-area in Discord called Qualify Yourself, which is to measure various indicators of yourself. Some people sleep with many instruments to measure heart rate, pulse, breathing, etc. Its very interesting.

Camellia: I am looking forward to this because I pay a lot of attention to my health and I usually record various health indicators. I want to see how their test is different from my records. The content of the test is mainly some basic physical skills, such as push-ups and other simple items, but more sophisticated instrument tests may be carried out in the next few weeks.

Host Star: We are very curious. 150 people were admitted this time. Can you share the background of other students, such as their nationality, occupation, or gender ratio?

Image source: Twone

Twone: Yes, I found a very interesting phenomenon, there are many more boys than girls. So once when we were queuing to use the restroom, the boys lined up for a long time, but there were very few people in the womens restroom. I took a photo to record this scene. When we first arrived, the girls held a small party. Because there was a Network State, we joked that it was a females State, which means a womens country. Then we held a simple small womens party to help women build some connections with each other, and then there will be a series of other activities to do.

Host Star: What about the distribution by country and occupation? What is the overall situation?

Twone: From the people I talked to, the majority were from the United States and China, and there were other countries as well, but they were not the mainstream. You can always find some classmates from different countries.

Camellia: There are also many Indians because Balaji is very influential in India.

Twone: Yes, we attended a small event of theirs in Singapore, and it felt like everyone admired him so much that I couldn’t even squeeze in to talk to him.

Host Star: So what is the distribution between the crypto circle and the non-crypto circle?

Twone: There are quite a lot of people who are not in the crypto circle. For example, a classmate used to work in natural sports in Shanghai. He even used Discord for the first time and needed me to teach him. There are also people who registered crypto wallets for the first time. The school’s learning model is also a good way to break the circle. After each exercise, we will mint an NFT and connect it to the wallet. Many people have their first crypto wallets through this method. This NFT is placed on the Solana chain.

Moderator Ruby: Balaji is really a huge supporter of Solana. All of his conferences are held together with Breakpoint.

Twone: Yes, but the team said that the chain selection was actually random. The staff made a TP link that supports Solana. We were still discussing at noon today whether to recommend Balaji to introduce cryptocurrency payment, because now only traditional methods such as Visa can be used to buy food. However, the staff brother said that Balaji may think that it is too troublesome to connect to cryptocurrency, and is worried that after connecting to Ethereum and Solana, other chains or communities will also ask why they are not connected to their chains. So these may still be discussed internally.

Host Star: The one thousand dollars you spend there is just for accommodation and does not include food, right?

Twone: Yes, one thousand dollars a month, you need to choose a roommate for a double bed room, if it is a double bed room, it is two thousand dollars. And then we are actually in a hotel, so the luxurious KTV you see is all the supporting facilities of the hotel.

Arvin: (Back to the background of my classmates), I think the background of my classmates is very diverse. I met a developer whose Twitter profile says U.S. Army Paratrooper. After we chatted for a while, I found out that he was a military doctor in the special forces. I am personally very interested in the military, and I didnt expect to meet a military doctor in the special forces in such an occasion. He also told me that his teacher was the military doctor who was the prototype of the incident in the movie Black Hawk Down. I think the connection between the worlds is really amazing.

There were also people from various backgrounds, such as those working in Chinese real estate and school education. He said he was working in school education at Country Garden. There were also many young graduates, mainly working in startups. Some people came from very far away places, such as Iceland, or those who did nature sports in the jungle as mentioned earlier. The backgrounds were very diverse, but the story of the paratrooper and the military doctor impressed me the most. This connection was really magical.

Host Ruby: (That brings us back to the previous question). Among these students, what percentage are from the crypto community?

Camellia: I think about 90%. Even if their main business is not in the crypto circle, most people hold some cryptocurrencies themselves.

Twone: Basically everyone knows something about cryptocurrencies, after all, in Balajis posts, he has always emphasized the importance of Bitcoin holders. However, we have also met some people from traditional fields, such as a German couple, the husband works in a traditional bank, and they also accidentally saw this school online. They have stable jobs, and the company in the Netherlands allows them to work remotely for three months each month, so they work while looking at the situation here.

Host Ruby: Are there any children here? Or what is the age range? How old are the youngest and oldest students?

Twone: The youngest may be in his 20s, and the oldest may be 50 or 60. Some are successful entrepreneurs. We also met a professor who taught entrepreneurship at Tsinghua University and Peking University. He brought his family and children with him. This professor is American and speaks very good Chinese.

Camellia: I met a mother and son who came together. The mother was in her 50s and the son was in his 20s. The mother applied first. She works in medicine or sports and is particularly interested in Bryan Johnson.

Host Star: So from what I heard, most of the students are not necessarily working on crypto projects, but they actually understand or hold cryptocurrencies. I remember that day Balaji interviewed Pieter Levels and asked him if he believed in cryptocurrencies. Pieter Levels said that he also holds cryptocurrencies. So it can be seen that among some highly educated people, the penetration rate of Crypto is still quite high. Then lets move on to the next question. This school is divided into four parts: learning, training, making money and entertainment. Among these four parts, are there any places that are particularly impressive to you?

Camellia: Can you tell me about our daily routine? For example, I get up at 7:30 in the morning, go to fat burning training at 8, and have breakfast and chat with my classmates at 9. I start working for a while around 10 to 11, and have lunch with my classmates at 12 noon. We eat the blueprint healthy meals they provide. There are small classes every Monday and Thursday afternoon. On Monday, Balaji may give a lecture, and on Thursday, Bryan Johnson Vitalik is invited to share with us.

Twone: We might go to bed a little later, because after finishing an event at night, I will go back to my hotel room to write on Twitter. The tweets you can see are all posted during this period of time at night. During the day, your experiences may be scattered in many other places, and then you will organize them at night, or have some personal time like this.

As for the learning part, as Camellia said, the Guest Talks on Monday and Thursday are very exciting, and they are more about peer-to-peer learning. Everyone learns through self-creation and initiating various activities, such as learning how to build the front-end, back-end, design web pages, and even beginner courses for writing code. They explain it in a very simple and easy-to-understand way, which really allows everyone to start from scratch and learn some technology quickly. For example, from downloading Visual Studio software to writing a simple Hello World website, they can teach students all kinds of basics in more than an hour, which I think is great.

Next is the exercise part, which Camellia also mentioned. Exercise is the most clearly structured part at present. You can make an appointment for a specific exercise time, and professional coaches will develop exercise plans for different parts of the body. The parts of the body that are exercised every day are different, and you will find that Balaji himself has benefited a lot from it. His figure has changed a lot compared to a year ago.

Ruby: Yes, I remember that at the Network State Conference, Bryan Johnson kept asking Balaji, Why cant you get 8 hours of sleep? Balaji, how many hours did you sleep last night? I saw you were still revising your PPT in the middle of the night.

Twone: Yes, for Earn, Balaji will release a Bounty every day, and everyone can participate in it. Usually, they will do some open source projects, and then announce the winners on Discord and Farcaster. The winner is decided by Balaji in the end, and the bonus cannot be shared by multiple people. Whoever completes the task first will take the bonus.

Host Ruby: So what are the tasks these days? I remember the bonus is not low, its quite high,

Twone: Yes, $1,000, $1,000 every day.

Host Star: So all his tasks require writing code?

Twone: The most recent task is that Balaji hopes someone will make an open source tool to unify the format of all resumes uploaded by students. Some resumes are in PDF format, and some are in other formats, so this is actually a relatively simple requirement. Balaji hopes that these tools can be practical.

This is actually a very important part, because in the first week, everyone is still in the stage of establishing connections and adapting to each other. We came to this Network School, and we definitely hope to have some results and outputs. The Earn mechanism has promoted everyone to do some substantive projects. Balaji himself is also a serial entrepreneur, and he hopes to see more new projects and innovations emerge here.

Host Star: What about the fun part? Is this mainly organized by everyone on their own initiative, or are there some themes planned?

Arvin: As for fun, I think the most interesting and contrasting thing is that everyone meditates in the KTV. They also bought a lot of sports equipment, such as table tennis tables and basketballs from Decathlon, for everyone to relax and exercise. Some students will spontaneously organize entertainment activities, such as chess. One student brought chess, and everyone played chess together. Some people also organized board games, but the number of people who signed up was not large, so it has not been carried out yet. They suggested playing Werewolf. I am not particularly familiar with these board games, but I joined the relevant discussions to see if there is a chance to participate in some activities.

Regarding the Learn and Earn parts, I can also add from other perspectives. As for Learn, in addition to their guest speeches, there are also some content shared by Balaji himself, which is very informative. In addition, Peer-to-Peer learning is also very good. Many people spontaneously organize various activities to share what they are good at, and everyone can learn together. For example, I just mentioned using AI to make movies, sharing video production skills, and sharing programming skills. These Peer-to-Peer learning is really valuable. Twone also plans to share some of the content he has written before to help everyone learn more about topics related to Network School or Crypto.

Yoga class organized by Camellia. Image source: Camellia

As for the Earn part, I think the most interesting part is Bounty, but the scope of Earn is not limited to this. In addition to Bounty, there are also recognition from others, partnerships, etc., which are also part of Earn. For example, Camellia helped to clean up the coffee machine. I think this is also a way of Earn. Earn is the trust of the entire community in you. Yesterday, Twone and I helped install Starlink, filmed a video, and recorded the installation process of Starlink. Later, we may release a video on how to build Starlink. This process involves technical work such as pulling wires and testing speeds. It is very interesting for everyone to work together. This is also a manifestation of Earn, because through these collaborations, everyone can quickly establish relationships, reach consensus, and form cooperation.

Twone: I would also like to add that Arvin mentioned that I might share about Crypto public goods in next weeks sharing. I have participated in the writing of relevant reports before, and I also hope to share here how to build more public goals (Public goods) to make Network Schools infrastructure better. To be honest, the team is really busy now, and some people even go to bed at 4 am. While we are doing a healthy work and rest schedule, the team is actually working around the clock to contribute to the entire environment. As the first batch of members, we are more of a part of the community, using our respective strengths to do what we can. For example, whether it is a coffee machine or Starlink, these are all part of the infrastructure. As members of the V1 V 0 batch, we hope that those who come later will be able to enjoy better and better facilities.

So I think that the 150 of us who came here should actually be more of a community, where everyone can use their own strengths to do what they can, including what I just mentioned, whether it is the coffee machine or Starlink, they are actually part of the infrastructure. As members of the V1 V0 group, we hope that those who come later will be able to enjoy better and better facilities.

Host Ruby: So Earn is also like saying, our community should work together to do something, how can I contribute to the community, win more connection trust and so on.

Camellia: Yes, and there are many self-organized groups here, such as writing, dancing, morning jogging, meditation, etc. You can gather friends to participate in activities according to your own interests.

Host Ruby: You mentioned the Network School team just now. How many people are there running this school?

Twone: There are very few people, about four or five.

Arvin: There were at most ten staff members on site, maybe six or seven.

Host Star: It’s very concise. After listening to it, I feel that the whole format is like mobilizing the power of the community, rather than designing and arranging it all by ourselves from top to bottom.

Moderator Ruby: Including the courses and the content you publish, Balaji only has scheduled sharing sessions on Monday and Thursday afternoons. The rest of the time is blank, which is equivalent to everyone designing their own learning content.

Arvin: Yes, we also discussed some improvement suggestions today, such as setting up more discussion areas for specialized fields in Discord. Everyone can establish different faculties according to their respective skills, and each person is responsible for different courses, so that a curriculum can be formed. I think this process is very interesting.

Moderator Ruby: Very constructive. I think it shouldnt even be called a school. Its more like a co-governed community, and learning is just a part of it. In the future, if there is no need for a four-year full-time university, this model may be more ideal. Everyone can find a balance between life, making money, and learning, and grow together with like-minded community partners.

Twone: Indeed, this is a bit like the theory of Network State. This is his first experiment, the first time to put these theories into practice and let everyone see their actual operation. Here, everyones identity is also diverse. For example, the developer mentioned by Arvin is both a former US soldier and a code developer, and now he is exploring more possibilities in the network state. I think this may be the trend of the future network state and startup society.

Moderator Ruby: Theoretically, this is his first physical node, and there may be more nodes in the future. According to the steps in his book, there will be one physical node first, and then gradually expand to multiple nodes around the world, like an archipelago.

Twone: Yes, people outside will be curious and observe this startup society to see whether it will grow or shrink, whether the experiment is successful, and whether the members lives will be better. For early members, they will also calculate whether their investment is worthwhile to decide whether they will continue to invest, which will also make later participants have confidence in this startup society. This belief-driven first motivation will make this society better and better.

Host Star: Yes, because I have read Balajis Enrollment Guide, he actually encourages everyone to develop remote work skills and be able to work anywhere in the world. In this way, when you master this skill, you can easily form a digital nomad community, break away from geographical restrictions, and live and work anywhere in the world.

Arvin: Yes, I want to add one more thing. You mentioned that the schedule feels empty. Why? Because many people who come here have to work remotely, and it is impossible to arrange full-day courses like traditional schools. Everyone also has to deal with work, so the schedule is not too full. On the one hand, the community can organize activities spontaneously, and on the other hand, it also gives everyone time to deal with work. For example, many students from the United States have to adapt to the American time zone. They may need to rest during the day and then work with American colleagues at night. So, this is one of the reasons why the schedule seems relatively empty.

Digital Nomads’ Lifestyle and Future Outlook

Moderator Ruby: We actually collected a lot of questions from the audience. We previously shared our participation in the conference on Twitter, and some listeners sent me private messages asking if we would interview people from Network School later, so we collected some questions from them. Some listeners actually applied and received acceptance letters, but were unable to go due to work reasons. Some emails were missed and fell into spam, which was a pity. So the question that everyone is most concerned about is whether you have achieved the expected gains in this first week, or whether there are any unexpected surprises?

Camellia: I think it really exceeded my imagination. At first, I thought it would be the kind where 10 people would live together in a big bunk bed, because on the first day of school, Balaji said not to have too high expectations here. So my expectations were very low, but after arriving here, I found that the infrastructure was better than I thought. Although there is still a lot of room for improvement, everything is progressing very quickly. For example, regarding the problem of the coffee machine yesterday, everyone mentioned that there was no coffee in the school, and the team solved it immediately. It was really fast. As for the people here, I originally thought that the dinner would be short, about an hour, but every time we had a meal and chatted, we chatted for two or three hours. The materials I accumulated this week are enough for me to use for several months.

Another random thing was that one time when I was working in the lobby on the first floor, a classmate asked me if I had time to record a podcast. I thought about setting a time and sent him a link to let him make an appointment, but he said we could just go out and record while walking. I said, sure, and ended up recording it very casually. Everything was moving very fast, and I really liked this speed.

Twone: Yes, actually I think my ideas are quite similar to Camellias. We didnt have too many expectations before coming here. We came here mainly out of trust and curiosity about Balaji. What surprised me most was the communication with different people. Every time we met, we would gain something new. Many people were very interested in us Chinese people, and even asked me if I could hold a Chinese learning session. We were all learning from each other.

I think Network School is very different from other projects I have participated in before, such as Zuzalu or Crecimiento in Argentina. First of all, it is longer. Three months gives everyone more opportunities to learn and create together. Every interaction here is full of unknowns and is very interesting. It is like an experiment that shows the realization process of Balajis network state concept. We can see how technology drives the evolution of social forms. Blockchain technology has reached a turning point, which can realize unalterable records and unseizable assets. This is a change in production relations guided by new productivity. I feel very lucky to be able to witness these changes at this point in time.

Moderator Ruby: Yes, I think if this kind of school can be expanded globally, and each community has such a diverse background, with people from different countries living together, within ten years, the Nobel Peace Prize will be awarded to Balaji. This is really a great way to promote communication.

Arvin: I was the same. I also exceeded my expectations. Before I came here, Twone was still in Argentina, on the flight back home. At the opening ceremony, Balaji told everyone some expectations, but they were very general. I was thinking, is this Network School? It seems that Balaji didnt make many plans. We came here to take it one step at a time. We didnt set high expectations at the time.

But after coming here, I met a lot of interesting people and saw different ways of life. It feels very different to learn about these stories online and talk to them face to face. Maybe unlike Camellia or Twone, I have all my education experience in mainland China. Relatively speaking, the development path of these mainland students may have a stereotype and path dependence, but here, I see more possibilities in life.

On the first day, I met an Australian entrepreneur who was about my age. He was like a different person. I was shocked by what he did. I have read a lot of stories about entrepreneurs in San Francisco recently, and how they went from 0 to 1. I really met a lot of entrepreneurs from San Francisco this time. It was much more real to communicate with them face to face than to listen to podcasts or watch interviews. It was very interesting.

Then I think, if I want to summarize the most important gain, it is to see a group of digital nomads, gathered through Balajis Network School, everyone has the ability to work remotely, and what can be done in this space. Because the general digital nomads only have a convenient electronic device, a computer and an Internet connection, but they basically dont have much connection with this place. But here, after we finish our own remote work, the physical work we do is also a very interesting point, just like what we talked about before, how to identify what we still need to make our lives better.

Host Ruby: Are you still accepting applications?

Camellia: Yes, you can apply through the official website at any time and you have more flexibility in your time.

Host Star: Is there any part that you think will be very useful in your future work and life, or can you make some adjustments to your long-term work, life or study?

Camellia: I think it’s mainly about connections. I like meeting different people. The reason I moved to Portugal before was because Lisbon is a gathering place for digital nomads. There is a big space to meet people from different backgrounds. So here, I also feel that there are many interesting people. In the future, we can get together and do some fun projects. I don’t have any other goals. I usually don’t make any plans for the future.

Arvin: The biggest idea that Twone and I have is that we really hope to stay in network school for the full three months, or even continue to stay there after that. This is probably the biggest change so far.

Host Ruby: Are there any areas that you think were slightly below expectations, or areas that could be done better or improved, in terms of event design or hardware?

Twone: Hardware is actually the point that needs to be improved the most so far, especially the network issue. The infrastructure of the network school should be the top priority, but we are currently using the hotel’s own Wi-Fi, which is not very stable and often disconnects. Most of the time we use mobile hotspots.

Host Ruby: I didn’t expect that. I feel that Network School can seek sponsorship from Starlink in the future. It really needs it.

Host Star: So it was after you raised this issue that they went and bought Starlink?

Twone: They should have had such expectations before, but they are just building it up step by step now, because I saw that they purchased the equipment on September 13th.

Arvin: The team member who bought Starlink told us that the equipment had been in his room for a long time, but he was too busy to actually install it. So we now have a group called Build Squad in Discord, where everyone installs Starlink together and tests it.

Host Ruby: Apart from the hotel area, are there any other places on the island that you guys can go to and have fun together?

Twone: I took a walk around. Its very close to the beach. I also went to a big shopping mall. It was mostly Chinese restaurants and duty-free shops. There wasnt anything particularly fun.

Host Star: Where is it located exactly? Is it near the border?

Arvin: It takes about 10 to 20 minutes by bus to the second checkpoint in the city center. I happened to go to Singapore that day and experienced the process of commuting from here to Singapore. Everything was very smooth before arriving in Singapore. But after arriving in Singapore, the bus needs to cross the horse to this checkpoint in Singapore, and may need to undergo some inspections such as customs, and the waiting time is the longest.

Twone: There is another point that needs to be improved, and they are also improving it recently, which is the issue of food. In the beginning, all three meals a day were Blueprint, and many people said they were very hungry, every three or four hours, and the amount of exercise was actually quite high at the beginning. So now we have made some improvements to the food, such as adding a lot of protein, chicken and other meats to dinner, so that everyone can eat a little better, such a gradual process.

Image source: Twone

Host Star: How much does his meal usually cost?

Twone: Five dollars, that’s pretty cheap.

Host Star: Thats fine. How about the intensity of your exercise in the morning? Because we just talked about the amount of exercise, how many calories do you usually burn?

Twone: It wasnt long, about half an hour, but there was almost no rest time. I did it one set after another, and the types of exercise kept switching. It was very tiring. Normal high-intensity exercise should have a 10 to 30 second rest interval in the middle, but here it was continuous.

Image source: Twone

Host Star: Yeah, that’s a bit like CrossFit?

Camellia: It’s a bit like a Les Mills class. Our coach, Riggen, is a Les Mills coach. I trained with him before when I was in New Zealand, so I’m quite familiar with his style.

Host Ruby: Camellia has been to New Zealand, the UK and Portugal, right?

Camellia: Yes, Portugal is now our base camp. I usually visit various places around the world and travel around a lot. Lisbon has a good location and it is convenient to go anywhere from Portugal.

Host Star: Then we can continue the topic and talk about the experience of digital nomads, because everyone has such experience.

Camellia: I went to New Zealand in 2010 to study at university, and then worked for some well-known local companies. After I got my status, I was also given a two-year work visa to the UK. I went to the UK in 2019. At that time, I was already a freelancer. I gradually began to come into contact with the concept of digital nomads and decided to try it myself. I met Pieter Levels online. He has been advocating digital nomads to go to Portugal during the epidemic. He also launched a service called Rebase, so I moved to Portugal.

Host Star: Is the experience of digital nomads different in different places? What do you think of the experience in different places?

Camellia: Portugal is a very suitable place for digital nomads, especially Lisbon, where people speak English very well and hardly need to learn Portuguese. In addition, they used to have special tax incentives for digital nomads. In addition, it is a cryptocurrency-friendly country, many cryptocurrency conferences are held there, and the cost of living is relatively low. But now the situation has changed, because there are more digital nomads and house prices have been driven up. Portugals digital nomad visa can be obtained for two years for the first application, and can be renewed for three years after two years.

For me, Lisbon is a very good choice. In comparison, I cannot adapt to the climate in Southeast Asia. The places where Network School is located are generally good, but the weather is too hot and humid. New Zealand and the UK have four distinct seasons, which I prefer. However, it often rains and is cloudy in the UK. If you don’t have a lot of income, living in London is actually a very expensive place, but you can also meet a lot of friends from all over the world, and there are many cultural activities there.

Twone: Camellia mentioned Lisbon. A good friend of ours, K, is also a digital nomad in Lisbon. If there is a chance, I would like to go there and take a look. As for me, I studied in Beijing and went to New York for an exchange. The pace of life in New York is very fast, and everyone is desperately pursuing their dreams. Later, I returned to Hong Kong to continue studying and lived there for two or three years. The pace of life was also very fast, because the housing prices were high and the place was small, so everyone might not have much of their own life and spent most of their time working. Now I live in Shenzhen, where there is a strong entrepreneurial atmosphere, rich culture, and high cost-effectiveness in food and services.

As for Argentina, I live in the safest neighborhood in Buenos Aires, which was previously listed in the top ten most livable cities in the world. If you only live there, the experience will be very good. The government invests a lot in education and public resources, and the facilities are basically free. They also have a large natural museum that protects many birds. Whether you like nature or city life, Argentina can find a balance. Whats more interesting is that the local acceptance of cryptocurrency is very high, and offline payment is no problem. You can even see cryptocurrency exchange points on Google Maps, and the exchange rate is not bad.

Then there is Chiang Mai, Thailand, which is also a great place. The locals believe in Buddhism and everyone is very friendly. The taste of the food is also similar to that of China, and it is very safe. Southeast Asia is a good choice for those who have just gone abroad or want to experience the life of a digital nomad.

Arvin: Twone and I basically traveled together and went to Argentina and Turkey. Let me add some information about Southeast Asia, such as Singapore, Malaysia and Thailand. Personally, I like Thailand the most. Thailand has low prices and very good living services, especially Thai massage, which is cheap and has great services. And if you are used to the hot and humid climate in the south, you will adapt to Thailand very quickly. The advantage of Malaysia is that it is close to Singapore and you can go there at any time. What impressed me most was probably the durian here. Twone especially likes durian. As soon as we arrived in Malaysia, we went to try the durian shop recommended by local friends.

Host Star: Last question, Balaji mentioned in the article that he hopes to solve the visa problems of some digital nomads through the form of Network School. Does he have a specific plan?

Arvin: There doesn’t seem to be a clear plan at the moment. I think we need to solve the crypto payment problem first, and passports and visas may be solved later. If crypto payment can be solved, then the passport problem may be solved next.

Host Ruby: I think this is of particular concern to many people. As Pieter Levels has shared before, digital nomads often have to move to another place every 60 days or so, which is indeed a pain point.

Twone: Thats right. Network School is a practice of the network nation. Balajis goal is to make the network nation more influential. In the future, it may promote mutual recognition between sovereign states, or have some rights of their own. If so, he can take this opportunity to issue some documents similar to visas or identities. Then I can share that Argentina has a crypto-economic special zone, and in the future it may also promote some policies that support the crypto economy, and even issue green cards. These problems are the pain points faced by digital nomads around the world. Whether in South America or Southeast Asia, everyone is looking for solutions.

Moderator Ruby: Thank you very much for sharing today. We are looking forward to meeting you again in the future and continuing to learn about the development of Network School. It is like a community that changes spontaneously, and it may be different every week. Finally, we will update the follow-up progress of the three guests Camellia, Twone and Arvin in the Shownotes.

This article is sourced from the internet: Exploring the Stanford 2.0 Network School: Spending $1,000 a day, with an acceptance rate of 5%

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