Andreessen Horowitz (a16z) is establishing an “academy” positioned as a pipeline for young people seeking to build or join a Silicon Valley startup. The venture capital firm will launch the initiative with 10 partners and substantial backing, marking its latest move into the education sector.
The “Horowitz Andreessen Academy” arrives with partners including Anduril, Anthropic, Coinbase, Google, Meta, NVIDIA, OpenAI, Palantir, Replit and Stripe. The programme carries roughly £33 million in funding led by a16z. Although billed as a “highly selective school”, it does not grant any degree or accreditation. Instead, students will attend short classes led by prominent technology figures, such as OpenAI chief executive Sam Altman, alongside “co-ops” that place students in roles at technology companies.
What the programme offers students
To take part in the one-year programme, students will need to relocate to San Francisco and arrange their own accommodation. Participants are promised more than £39,000 in compute credits and a £4,000 travel and research budget provided by a16z. According to the announcement, students will face “no traditional grades, tests, or homework”, but will instead “learn from Silicon Valley’s most storied founders and operators in short, high-impact classes and spend the rest of your time working and exploring”.
The Horowitz Andreessen Academy will be free for its first one-year programme, scheduled for the autumn of 2027. It will admit only 50 students and is designed primarily for recent secondary school leavers.
Silicon Valley’s push into education
The academy represents the latest attempt by Silicon Valley figures to reshape America’s education system by building their own alternatives. Elon Musk, Mark Zuckerberg and Jeff Bezos have each invested in founding their own schools, while a16z founders Marc Andreessen and Ben Horowitz have been openly critical of universities.
Last year, Andreessen reportedly described Stanford and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology as “political lobbying operations fighting American innovation” in a group chat involving White House officials and technology leaders. The new academy reflects that scepticism towards traditional higher education, offering an unconventional route built around hands-on work and direct access to established founders rather than formal qualifications. The first cohort will number 50 students when applications open ahead of the autumn 2027 launch.
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