Changpeng Zhao announces new ‘Giggle Academy’ project despite potential legal uncertainty

After keeping his distance from the social networking space, Binance founder and former CEO Changpeng Zhao appears to be on his way back. In a post on X, Zhao said he would be launching a new project called Giggle Academy. This is a free-for-all educational project that aims to provide basic education for grades 1-12 through engaging interactive games. According to Zhao, no crypto token – existing or new – is part of this project.

Zhao stepped down as CEO of Binance last year after pleading guilty to violating US anti-money laundering and sanctions laws. He now faces potential jail time, a decision on which will be finalized around April 30, when Zhao is scheduled to appear in court for that sentence.

Despite these legal uncertainties, Zhao decided to go ahead with launching Giggle Academy. Zhao is hiring a small team of teachers who can create digital content to manage this project and report directly to him.

“Building a high-quality and stable educational platform that is completely free and accessible to everyone is the most impactful thing I could do for the next chapter of my life,” Zhao said on the official website of this virtual academy.

In the white paper of this project, Zhao mentioned that this educational project aims to provide access to disadvantaged children in developing countries. In addition to core school subjects such as languages, mathematics, science and biology – Zhao aims to include subjects such as blockchain, AI, finance, negotiation and entrepreneurship, among others.

Zhao reduces the gamification of learning – designed to reward students with NFT badges, scores and leaderboards.

“Education is fundamental to everything in our world. My area of ​​expertise is building (build teams) software platforms. We (together with a team) can reach hundreds of millions of people. It’s scalable and therefore has a big impact,” Zhao further noted.

The former CEO of Binance was released in the United States on $175 million (roughly Rs. 1,450 crore) bail after pleading guilty in November to money laundering violations. His plea also includes a fine of $50 million (roughly Rs. 414 crore) and demands that he step down as CEO of Binance.