A Global Team of Education & Technology Leaders Dedicated to Student Growth

Uniting result-driven curriculum design with deep expertise in how children learn, our team brings global perspectives to create meaningful learning experiences.

Meet Our Founder

Education

Graduated from Tsinghua University with a Bachelor's degree in Engineering Physics and a Master's degree in Management Science and Engineering, an institution renowned for excellence in scientific research and leadership development.

Professional Experience

Held significant roles at IBM, Oracle, and Salesforce, gaining extensive experience in enterprise technology, product innovation, and global operations.
Founded LingoAce in 2017 and scaled it into a globally recognized learning platform honored by major international awards, including the GSV EdTech 150, Fast Company's World's Most Innovative Companies, HolonIQ's global EdTech rankings etc.
Lead the company's evolution to ACE Academy, expanding from language learning to a comprehensive academic ecosystem covering Math, Language Arts, Chinese, competition readiness, and enrichment programs.

Designed by Leading Educators

ACE Academy curriculum is designed by a team of expert educators

Head of Math Curriculum at LingoAce

Ph.D. in Linguistics and Cognitive Science at Stanford University

Member of the Mathematical Association of America (MAA)

Former Principal Investigator for NIH-funded grants in child development.

20+ years of experience in STEM and language learning design and assessment development.

Dr. Yuan Zhao

Adjunct Professor in the Electrical Engineering Department at Columbia University

Ph.D. in Electrical Engineering from Caltech

10+ years of experience in cultivating math talent

China Mathematical Olympiad (CMO) Gold Medal Winner

Adjunct professor in the Electrical Engineering Department at Columbia University.

Dr. Hui Jin

Associate professor at Tulane University, Ph.D. mentor

Ph.D.in Statistical Genetics (minor in Statistics), North Carolina State University

Chinese Math Olympiad (CMO) qualifier

Led and participated in multiple grants supported by NIH and NSF

6 years of experience in math competition training

Dr. Jian Li

Professor and Department Chair at Rutgers University (Newark), Ph.D. Mentor.

Ph.D. in Mathematics, Columbia University

7 years of experience in math competition training

Member of the National Science Foundation Review Committee

Professor and Department Chair at Rutgers University (Newark), Ph.D. Mentor.

Dr. Zhengyu Mao

ACE Academy by LingoAce Milestone

2017

Founder and CEO Hugh Yao starts LingoAce in Singapore
Chinese Live's Advanced Program is the first product to launch

2018

Opens China office in Beijing
Raises angel funding from Decent Capital

2019

Opens Wuhan Education Research Centre in China
Wins Singapore SME100's Moving Companies Award
Raises $3M pre-series A funding from Decent Capital

2020

Opens Thailand and Indonesia offices
Opens physical center in Singapore for Blended Learning Program
Raises $13M Series A funding from Shunwei Capital and Sequoia Capital India

2021

More than 7,000+ teachers have taught
2.2M+ classes to learners from 180+ countries and regions
Opens more offices in Chengdu, China and in the SF Bay Area in the U.S.
Partners with Peking University Press to provide best-in-class training and resources
Raises $160M total in Series B and Series C rounds led by Sequoia Capital India, Tiger Global, Owl Ventures, and SWC Global.

2022

GSV Edtech150 names LingoAce as one of the most transformational growth companies in digital learning

2023

Recognized in Fast Company's 2023 list of the World's Most Innovative Companies, ranking 5th in the Asia-Pacific category, surpassing numerous renowned tech companies.
Awarded the 'Top 10 Foreign-Funded Enterprises in Guanggu' by Wuhan East Lake High-Tech Development Zone.
Launched math and other courses.

2024

The first Ace Academy learning center in the U.S. officially opened in the Bay Area.
The total number of lessons delivered globally surpassed 22M+ classes.

2025

Recognized by leading institutions including HolonIQ and Forbes China.
Served over 580,000 students worldwide.

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