This is a very interesting concept. I wonder how the previous Thiel Fellows are doing. Probably too short of a time period for any definitive results to come out, but it would be interesting if selection of highly qualified individuals is more of a predictor of success than say, Harvard or MIT.

One might argue about the pedigree & network you get from college, but couldn't motivated Thiel Fellows build equally powerful networks by virtue of being a Thiel Fellow too?