a16z is challenging Silicon Valley’s love for drop-outs by launching a school
- ID
- 27353
- Status
- summarized
- Published
- 23 Sep 2026, 2:24 AM
- Fetched
- 23 Sep 2026, 4:03 AM
- Provider
- TechCrunch
- Category
- technology
- Original URL
- https://techcrunch.com/2026/09/22/a16z-is-challenging-silicon-valleys-love-for-drop-outs-by-launching-a-school/
- Source URL
- https://techcrunch.com/feed/
Summary
- Score
- 5.0
- Created
- 23 Sep 2026, 4:06 AM
- Tags
- Audience
- saas_foundersai_ml_learnersdevelopers
What happened
Andreessen Horowitz is launching The Horowitz Andreessen Academy in San Francisco, a tuition-free one-year program for ~50 high school graduates selected on 'proof of work' (what they've built, shipped, or earned). The for-profit venture has raised $42 million, plans to expand to a two-year program in 2028 charging elite-private-university tuition, and offers access to 200 mentors from ten corporate partners including OpenAI, Anthropic, Nvidia, Replit, and Stripe. It is not accredited and grants no degree or transferable credits.
Why it matters
For founders and builders in Malaysia, this signals a shift in how elite VC networks are cultivating talent pipelines — prioritizing demonstrated building over credentials. If you're hiring young talent or designing education/community programs, expect competition from credential-free, mentorship-heavy models backed by major tech firms. The 'proof of work' admission criterion is worth borrowing for your own selection processes.
Discussion angle
Is 'proof of work' admissions (what you've built/shipped) a better filter than degrees for hiring or community programs in Malaysia's tech scene, and what would a local version of this look like?