CHENGDU, China – In an era when the ability to communicate across cultures has never been more critical, a student-led venture at Sichuan Normal University is quietly revolutionizing how Chinese teenagers learn to tell their stories to the world.

"Voice Up Academy," founded by members of the university’s championship-winning English speech team, has constructed an integrated platform spanning training, competition, and international exposure—all centered on one mission: empowering youth to narrate Chinese culture in English with authenticity and confidence.

The project’s flagship product is a proprietary competition, the "National Youth Chinese Culture International Communication English Competition," which carries dual endorsements from UNITAR and the TOC. Unlike conventional speech contests judged solely on linguistic proficiency, this event evaluates contestants on cultural narrative depth, cross-cultural adaptability, and international communication value.

"We are not building a generic speech training business," explained Lu Dingxin, the team’s technology lead. "Every course module, every piece of our AI assistant ‘Xiao Yan,’ is purpose-built for one specific goal: helping a teenager explain Bashu culture or rural revitalization to an international audience."

The AI assistant, currently in beta testing, functions as a 24-hour preparation partner—retrieving culturally relevant materials, critiquing practice speeches, and maintaining individual growth portfolios. It represents the project’s commitment to scaling personalized guidance through technology.

The numbers tell a compelling story. In pilot programs, course satisfaction reached 92 percent. Students progressed from being unable to complete a one-minute speech to delivering full cultural presentations at museums for international visitors. The project’s resource website has surpassed 10,000 registered users, offering over 300 local culture cases and 500 graded speech samples free of charge.

With plans to expand from the Chengdu-Chongqing region to six provinces across central and western China within three years, Voice Up Academy projects annual revenue exceeding 15 million RMB (approximately 2 million USD) by its third year, with a net profit margin above 25 percent.

The initiative has attracted coverage from multiple national media outlets and secured partnerships with 20 schools, five cultural venues, and three international organizations—all before its first official competition has concluded.（Li Siyu ; Li Yuhan）