YZi Labs
About YZi Labs
YZi Labs began as Binance Labs, which Changpeng Zhao (CZ) and Ella Zhang launched in 2018. Zhang was its first head and left in 2020. Binance spun the unit off in 2024. On January 23, 2025 it rebranded as YZi Labs, pronounced 'easy labs'. Press reports describe it as the family office of CZ and Binance co-founder Yi He. Zhang returned as Head of YZi Labs, and CZ coaches and mentors founders directly. The firm says it manages over $10 billion in assets and has a portfolio of more than 300 projects. It also runs an incubation program and a 12-week in-person residency for founders. On AI, Dr. Jing Xiong, AI Investment Director and a former Google Gemini engineer, was quoted in the VideoTutor announcement. YZi Labs has not published fund-by-fund names or sizes.
AI became a stated focus with the 2025 rebrand, alongside Web3 and biotech. The first AI deals sat close to crypto: Binance Labs backed Sahara AI and MyShell in August 2024. After the rebrand it backed Vana (user-owned data for AI), Tensorplex Labs (decentralized AI) and USD.AI (hardware-backed financing for AI compute). It then moved into AI software. In October 2025 it led VideoTutor's $11M seed round, which it called its first AI software investment. Its AI deals on the Lounge desk also include RoboForce ($52M seed, led), FinTax ($40M seed, led) and AAA C(H+A)RM ($4M seed). The firm says it works with founders on long-term, impact-first projects. It often invests alongside other funds, and the VideoTutor round also included JinQiu Fund, Baidu Ventures, Amino Capital and BridgeOne Capital.
YZi Labs says it invests at every stage. It has not published a check size range. Tracxn, a third-party database, counts 29 seed, 9 Series A and 4 Series B investments in its tracked set. It lists average round sizes of $7.79M for seed, $8.6M for Series A and $25.8M for Series B. These are round sizes, not YZi Labs' own check sizes. The firm has led rounds as large as $52M at seed (RoboForce, per the Lounge desk).
- VideoTutor: AI education agent that turns questions into animated lessons. YZi Labs led its $11M seed, announced October 2025.
- RoboForce: robotics company. Seed round of $52M, led by YZi Labs.
- FinTax: $40M seed round, led by YZi Labs.
- AAA C(H+A)RM: agent-focused AI orchestration platform. $4M seed.
- USD.AI: protocol offering hardware-backed financing for AI infrastructure. Invested August 2025.
- Vana: AI data ownership network. Described as YZi Labs' first AI investment after the rebrand.
- Tensorplex Labs: decentralized AI lab.
- Sahara AI: decentralized AI platform. $43M round in August 2024, backed under the Binance Labs name.
- cointelegraph.com/news/binance-labs-rebrands-yzi-labs-biotech-ai
- coindesk.com/business/2025/01/23/binance-labs-gets-major-overhaul-with
- crypto.news/binance-labs-rebrands-to-yzi-labs-with-cz-at-the-helm
- fintecbuzz.com/binance-labs-rebrands-to-yzi-labs
- yzilabs.com/blog/yzi-labs-made-its-first-ai-investment-in-videotutor-a
- cryptonews.com/news/czs-yzi-labs-leads-11m-round-in-ai-education-start
- yzilabs.com/blog/tag/news/investment
- yzilabs.com/blog/yzi-labs-invests-in-usd-ai-to-back-the-yield-bearing-
Investing activity
YZi Labs appears in 4 AI deals tracked by the Lounge deals desk, rounds totalling $103M, and led 2 of them. The rounds are mostly Seed, with a median round size of $40M and the largest at $52M. The most recent are AAA C(H+A)RM (Seed, $4M, Sep 2026), FinTax (Seed, $40M, Aug 2026) and VideoTutor (Seed, $11M, May 2026).
YZi Labs most often invests alongside Huobi Ventures, Nvidia, Pundi AI and Amber Group, and the companies it backs on Lounge are mostly in AI.
Deals
Frequently asked questions about YZi Labs
Who founded YZi Labs?
It started as Binance Labs, launched in 2018 by Changpeng Zhao and Ella Zhang. It rebranded as YZi Labs in January 2025, and Zhang returned as its head.
Does YZi Labs invest in AI startups?
Yes. AI, Web3 and biotech are its stated focus areas. Recent AI deals include VideoTutor, USD.AI, Vana and Tensorplex Labs.
What stage and check size does YZi Labs invest at?
The firm says it invests at every stage. It does not publish check sizes. Tracxn lists most of its tracked deals at seed and Series A.
How big is YZi Labs?
The firm says it manages over $10 billion in assets and has more than 300 portfolio projects. It has not published individual fund sizes.
Who leads AI investing at YZi Labs?
Ella Zhang is Head of YZi Labs, and Changpeng Zhao is an active mentor and investor. Dr. Jing Xiong is AI Investment Director.
What AI companies has YZi Labs invested in?
YZi Labs's AI investments include AAA C(H+A)RM, FinTax, VideoTutor and RoboForce. The 4 rounds on Lounge are listed on this page with amounts, dates and co-investors.
What stage does YZi Labs invest at?
In the rounds tracked on Lounge, YZi Labs has invested at Seed, with a median round of $40M. YZi Labs led 2 of those rounds.
Who does YZi Labs co-invest with?
YZi Labs's most frequent co-investors on Lounge are Huobi Ventures (1 deal), Nvidia (1 deal), Pundi AI (1 deal), Amber Group (1 deal) and Nexus Venture Partners (1 deal).
How can founders reach YZi Labs?
Founders on Lounge can see YZi Labs's contact details in AI Investor Contacts (paid plans), check for a warm introduction through members who worked with the firm under Warm Paths, and add YZi Labs to their Investor Pipeline to track the conversation.