French Billionaire Opens A Free Coding University In Silicon Valley
It is open to anyone between the ages of 18 and 30.
Forbes reports.
French Billionaire Opens Free Coding University ’42’ In Silicon Valley
French technology entrepreneur and billionaire Xavier Niel (#129 in 2016 and #7 in France with a net worth of $8 billion) is investing $100 million of his own money to bring his Paris-based ’42′ coding school to Silicon Valley.
The name ’42′ is a nod to Douglas Adams’ science-fiction series The Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy, where 42 is the answer to “the ultimate question of life, the universe and everything.”
Based on a unique ‘open education’ model Mr. Niel launched in France 3 years ago, ’42′ has no teachers, books, curriculum or grades and is absolutely free of charge to attend!
The school’s U.S. branch acquired a 200,000-square-foot campus in Fremont – for over $62 million – that was previously occupied by the DeVry University, and which stands just across the bridge from Facebook’s FB -0.78% sprawling campus in Menlo Park. The non-profit school will also provide up to 600 dormitories for free, for the most disadvantaged students, in an additional 84,000-square-foot structure.
French Billionaire Opens Free Coding University '42' In Silicon Valley (Forbes)