Dystopia Labs founder exits at 37, leaving behind a Hack VC thread unresolved 🪦

Hsin-Ju Chuang, founder of Dystopia Labs and a former partner at crypto venture firm Hack VC, has died at age 37, according to the San Bernardino County Sheriff-Corner. California Highway Patrol officers responded to southbound Interstate 15 south of Field Road on Aug. 24, where Chuang was pronounced dead at the scene. Authorities have not publicly disclosed a cause of death, and a request from Cointelegraph to the California Highway Patrol for additional information did not receive a response by the time of publication.

According to her LinkedIn profile, Chuang previously served as head of growth at Stellar and at Solana. She joined Hack VC as a venture partner in 2021 before being named partner and head of platform in 2025. Before her death, Chuang had publicly accused Hack VC of mistreating her during her time at the firm and said she intended to release evidence supporting her allegations.

Hack VC co-founder and managing partner Alexander Pack said Wednesday that the firm was "shocked and saddened" by Chuang's death and offered condolences to her family, friends and others close to her. Pack said the company had not spoken directly with Chuang for more than 10 months and was not aware of the circumstances surrounding her death. "We have no further information, and only wish to ask everyone to be respectful of those who are grieving," he added.