Mexican tycoon Carlos Slim says his foundation is funding the translation of thousands of Khan Academy online classes into Spanish.

The telecommunications billionaire says the Carlos Slim Foundation shares the academy's goal to make "a free world-class education available to everyone."

Khan Academy offers thousands of free video lectures on YouTube in subjects like mathematics, physics and art history.

More than 500 videos have been translated into Spanish by Mexican professors, so far.

Slim says he will also fund online classes about Mexican history to be added to the website. He says funding for the not-for-profit organization comes from a 4 billion peso ($315 million) investment over the next three years to expand internet connectivity in Mexico.

Slim made the announcement Monday together with Khan Academy's founder, Salman Khan.