# Michelle Zhu

> Michelle Zhu is the co-founder and founding CEO of Huue, where she led business operations and commercialization efforts for microbially produced indigo. Raised in a family apparel business, she combined strategy and operations experience with Tammy Hsu’s bioengineering research. She left Huue in late 2024, subsequently consulted with founders, and later announced a commercial role at Ode with Anthropic.

- **Role:** Commercial team at Ode with Anthropic; co-founder and former founding CEO of Huue
- **Organizations:** Huue, Ode with Anthropic, Amizade
- **Education:** Bachelor of Science in Business Administration (BSBA), Washington University in St. Louis - Olin Business School
- **Known for:** Inc. Female Founders 100, 2021., Forbes 30 Under 30, Manufacturing and Industry, 2022., Huue won the U.S. deeptech category of the Female Founders Competition in 2020.

## Career timeline

- **2015** — Graduated from Washington University in St. Louis with a BSBA; LinkedIn lists management honors and magna cum laude.
- **2016** — Began serving on the board of Amizade, according to her LinkedIn profile.
- **2019** — Co-founded Huue with Tammy Hsu and joined IndieBio; presented indigo-dyed yarn developed with Berkeley Lab’s ABPDU.
- **2020** — Huue won the U.S. deeptech category of the M12, Mayfield, and Pivotal Ventures Female Founders Competition.
- **2021** — Named to Inc.’s Female Founders 100; Huue’s technology featured in TIME’s Best Inventions.
- **2022** — Recognized on Forbes 30 Under 30 in Manufacturing and Industry; Huue announced a $14.6 million Series A.
- **2023** — Announced Huue’s AGI Denim and Jonathan Cheung partnership for commercially available fabrics.
- **2024** — Announced her departure from Huue in December, after nearly six years, and an interest in advisory and consulting work.
- **—** — After independent consulting, announced joining the commercial team at Ode with Anthropic; exact start date was not established.

## Achievements

- Inc. Female Founders 100, 2021.
- Forbes 30 Under 30, Manufacturing and Industry, 2022.
- Huue won the U.S. deeptech category of the Female Founders Competition in 2020.
- Led Huue during its $14.6 million Series A announced in July 2022.
- Announced Huue’s first commercially available fabric partnership with AGI Denim and Jonathan Cheung in 2023.
- Reported $25 million in capital raised during her Huue tenure in her December 2024 departure announcement.
- Unreasonable Fellow; participated in Unreasonable Impact World Forum 2024.

## Latest updates

- **2024-12** — Announced her departure from Huue, with the company continuing under new leadership.
- **—** — Subsequent public LinkedIn update announces joining the commercial team at Ode with Anthropic following independent consulting; the exact announcement date is unverified.

## Links

- LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/michellejzhu35

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Profile page: https://yespress.io/michelle-zhu
Published by YesPress — https://yespress.io
Last updated: 2026-10-22