Tech Utopians Are Using a Chinese-Built ‘Ghost City’ to Trial Their Network State Fantasies

The article discusses how tech utopians are using a Chinese-built "ghost city" to trial their network state fantasies. The city, located in Asia, was built by the Chinese government but remains largely uninhabited. Now, a group of tech enthusiasts and anarcho-capitalists are using this abandoned city as a testbed to launch a new movement. The article suggests that these tech utopians are attracted to the city's lack of governance and infrastructure, which they see as an opportunity to create their own self-governing community. They aim to establish a "network state" - a decentralized, blockchain-based form of governance that operates outside of traditional nation-state boundaries. The article also raises concerns about the potential ethical and practical implications of these experiments, as well as the broader implications for the future of governance and urban development. It suggests that the use of this "ghost city" as a testing ground for these ambitious plans raises questions about the role of technology in shaping the future of society.