YZi Labs, the venture fund associated with Changpeng Zhao (CZ), has marked a new strategic milestone. The firm led an $11 million seed funding round in VideoTutor. This Silicon Valley startup uses artificial intelligence to create animated lessons. The announcement was confirmed in a recent post by YZi Labs on X, highlighting the first YZi Labs’ investment in AI in the software sector.
The $11 million financing attracted heavyweight investors. Participants included JinQiu Fund, affiliated with ByteDance, and Baidu Ventures. Amino Capital and BridgeOne Capital also joined the round. VideoTutor, founded by 20-year-old Kai Zhao, demonstrated impressive market traction. In just 10 days since its May 2025 launch, it amassed over 20,000 active users. The platform generated 20,000 tutorial videos in that short period. Furthermore, it received 1,000 API integration requests from schools and learning platforms.
VideoTutor positions itself as an “AI Education Agent.” Its core technology transforms any user question into a personalized lesson. This lesson is animated and voice-guided. The system combines a large language model (LLM) with a Manim rendering engine. This allows for precisely visualizing complex scientific concepts. The platform addresses a critical problem in the United States. Over 85% of students cannot afford traditional tutoring. The average cost ranges from $60 to $90 per hour.
Is this the signal of YZi Labs’ new investment focus?
Dr. Jing Xiong, AI Investment Director at YZi Labs, praised the technology. Xiong, a former Google Gemini engineer, stated that VideoTutor’s hybrid model ensures semantic precision and visual clarity. Moreover, it achieves this at lower costs than video diffusion tools. For YZi Labs, this move is significant. It represents a key diversification of its portfolio. The firm expanded its investment focus earlier this year. The YZi Labs’ investment in AI shows a clear expansion beyond purely Web3 companies.
The funds from this seed round have a clear destination. They will be used to boost research and development. VideoTutor plans to enhance its proprietary AI animation engine. It will also seek to scale its infrastructure to support growing demand. Global expansion is another key priority. The team will focus on establishing partnerships with educational institutions in North America and Europe. Kai Zhao, the founder, noted that they chose YZi Labs as lead investor for their shared vision of accessible education.
