Elon Musk’s 2014 launch of Ad Astra marked him as an early pioneer in the microschooling movement. Now, several Silicon Valley billionaires are backing such schools.
Microschools typically have fewer than 150 students and operate for profit. They appeal to tech elites frustrated by traditional schooling and “woke” culture. Additionally, they often leverage AI tutors for personalized learning.
In recent years, influential figures including Larry Ellison, Marc Andreessen, Peter Thiel, Sam Altman, Reed Hastings, and Bill Gates have invested in or supported these ventures.
These alternative education ventures are expanding rapidly. According to 2024 RAND estimates, around 750,000 to 2.1 million US students are educated in some form of microschool.
Graduates of these schools overwhelmingly pursue business and computer science, reflecting the pipeline of their funders.
The movement ties into a broader school-choice and privatization push, boosted by the Trump administration policies such as federal tax credits for education scholarships and homeschooling, alongside a Supreme Court ruling allowing the dismantling of the Department of Education.
As of now, 33 states have implemented private school choice programs, with many more legislative efforts underway.