Balaji Srinivasan's Network School acquired decentralized social platform Farcaster from Neynar on October 15, 2026, marking its second ownership shift of the year. Rebranding as the Network State Protocol, the platform requires users to sign a Singapore-inspired social smart contract featuring AI moderation and proof-of-humanity checks. Opt-in users receive governance NFTs, while declining users are moved to external clients.
Neynar's sale to Network School
- ▪Neynar evaluated several competing acquisition offers before deciding to transfer Farcaster to Balaji Srinivasan's Network School.
- ▪Balaji Srinivasan's Network School acquired Farcaster from Neynar on October 15, 2026, with undisclosed financial terms, as Neynar co-founder Rish announced transferring Farcaster's app, protocol repositories, and related products while Neynar employees join Network School.
Rebranding and protocol accessibility
- ▪Network School is rebranding Farcaster as the Network State Protocol to build opt-in digital societies that aim to print out in the physical world.
- ▪Under the Network State Protocol rebrand, the underlying Farcaster protocol remains open and permissionless for developers to build on.
Social smart contract user terms
- ▪Farcaster users who decline the new social smart contract have their keys, funds, followers, and post history moved to another client while retaining read-only main app access.
- ▪Farcaster users who opt in and vote to accept the social smart contract governance rules receive an access NFT onchain.
- ▪The Network State Protocol requires users to agree to a social smart contract modeled on Singapore's public conduct standards or receive read-only app access.
Content moderation and bans
- ▪Network School and humans are using AI software moderation to review posts and enforce conduct rules on the Network State Protocol app.
- ▪The Network State Protocol plans to implement proof-of-humanity verification to reduce bot and fake account activity on the app.
- ▪The Network State Protocol social smart contract classifies hate speech, death threats, scams, repeated fighting, stalking, and unlabelled AI content as bannable digital felonies.
- ▪Multiple social media users reported being banned from Farcaster over months-old posts regarding Elon Musk, Flock cameras, and gay appreciation following the new moderation enforcement.
Neynar co-founders' future plans
- ▪Neynar co-founders Rish and Manan will step down following the Farcaster transfer while other Neynar employees join Network School.
- ▪Neynar co-founder Rish considers breaking apart the AI token launchpad Clanker and finding a different acquirer for it following the Farcaster sale.
Farcaster's previous ownership history
- ▪Under Neynar's ownership, Farcaster adopted a developer-focused strategy emphasizing tools for builders after struggling to sustain original user growth.
- ▪Farcaster raised $150 million from investors including Paradigm and a16z crypto in 2024 before Merkle Manufactory's co-founders stepped back and sold its protocol, official client, and Clanker to Neynar on January 21, 2026.
Background on Network School
- ▪Network School relocated to Kazakhstan earlier in 2026 after facing operational challenges in Malaysia.
- ▪Balaji Srinivasan's Network School raised funding at a $2 billion valuation prior to acquiring Farcaster.
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