Chicago Students to Receive Free Chinese Classes

TRENDING: ByteDance Targets July Launch of Upgraded AI Video Model; Embodied AI Startup Kunlunxing Lands Multibillion Yuan Raise; Europe Has a Lot to Learn From China About Electric Trucks, Volvo CTO Says

LATEST: Europe Has a Lot to Learn From China About Electric Trucks, Volvo CTO Says; Embodied AI Startup Kunlunxing Lands Multibillion Yuan Raise; ByteDance Targets July Launch of Upgraded AI Video Model; China’s Starlink Challenger Seeks Up to $2.2 Billion for Satellite Network Push; New Model Propels Zhipu AI’s Market Value to Record HK$1 Trillion; In AI Pitch, Alibaba Chairman Urges Europe to Look Beyond U.S. Tech; Cover Story: China’s AI Boom Is Rewiring Its Power Grid; In Depth: How AI Is Rewiring White-Collar Work in China; Chipmaker YMTC Cedes Control of Foundry Unit Ahead of Mega IPO; Chinese Startup Manifold AI Raises Fresh Funding as Investors Bet on ‘World Models’; Crealights Takes Step Closer to Hong Kong IPO as Data Center Boom Fuels Growth Prospects; Tencent Lets AI Agent Make Purchases Through WeChat Pay; Galaxea AI Chief Says China Could Lead Robotics Models Within Three Years; SiliconFlow Raises $294 Million as China’s AI Inference Demand Surges; Ant Revamps Alipay With AI Assistant in Biggest App Overhaul; New Model Sends Zhipu AI’s Stock Soaring; DJI, Insta360 File Competing U.S. Patent Lawsuits Over Camera Tech; Cover Story: When Employees Leave, Their AI Clones Carry on Working; AI Stocks Zhipu, MiniMax Slide as Lock-Up Expirations Near; Japan’s Chip Exports to China Surge as Bilateral Trade Rebounds

By Noelle Mateer / Dec 17, 2018 10:47 AM / Society & Culture

Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel said VIPKid will offer Chicago public school students free Chinese courses. Photo: VCG

Kids at Chicago Public Schools are about to get a lot better at Mandarin.

Beijing-based online education giant VIPKid will offer public school students in Chicago free online courses as well as a “virtual pen pal program with students in China,” Chicago’s Office of the Mayor announced Thursday.

VIPKid, whose backers include basketball star Kobe Bryant, has had success among teachers in the U.S. who use the online platform to remotely tutor Chinese students in English. Now they’re flipping the script with their Mandarin-learning platform, called Lingo Bus.

More than 10,000 students at public schools in Chicago currently study Mandarin, the statement said.

Share this article

Open WeChat and scan the QR code