Former Hack VC partner Hsin-Ju Chuang found dead in a California desert at 37

Former Hack VC partner found dead in a Mojave Desert vehicle

Hsin-Ju Chuang, a former partner at the crypto venture firm Hack VC, was pronounced dead on Aug. 24 after her body was found inside a vehicle in California's Mojave Desert. The news only spread widely this month, after the local outlet Hoodline reported it and the story circulated on social media.

The coroner's release says Chuang, 37, of North Las Vegas, was pronounced dead at the scene at 9:47 p.m. local time. The California Highway Patrol found her body inside the vehicle, according to Hoodline.

Key points

• Chuang, 37, was a longtime operator in the crypto industry who worked as a partner at Hack VC, a venture firm that backs early-stage crypto projects.
• Authorities have not announced a cause of death, released autopsy results, or given further details about the circumstances, Hoodline reported.
• The day before she was found, she said on X that she had rejected a settlement with Hack VC that would have required her to stay silent about her time at the firm.
• Her allegations against the firm have not been independently verified, and no connection between her death and her post has been established.

What the coroner's office released

The San Bernardino County coroner's office said Chuang was pronounced dead at the scene at 9:47 p.m. local time on Aug. 24. The office directed further questions to the California Highway Patrol.

A spokesperson for the California Highway Patrol referred CoinDesk's request for comment to the CHP's Inland Division, which is handling the investigation.

Hoodline reported that officials have not announced a cause of death or published autopsy results.

Her Aug. 23 post and her allegations

On Aug. 23, Chuang published a long post on X saying she had turned down a settlement with Hack VC that would have required her to remain silent about her experience at the firm. "I've decided I'd rather take $0 than accept a settlement that requires me to stay silent about what happened to me," she wrote.

She also said she had fired her lawyers and planned to release all the evidence from her time at Hack VC on Aug. 26. The supplied coverage does not say whether that material was released.

In the same post, she alleged that she had been required to work through a serious medical emergency, faced threats and intimidation when she tried to leave, and later had problems with her health-insurance coverage. These claims have not been independently verified, and no link between the timing of her post and her death has been established.

Hack VC's response

On Aug. 23, Hack VC said in a post that its "understanding of events differs materially" from Chuang's account. That post has since been removed from the firm's X account.

A Hack VC spokesperson told CoinDesk on Wednesday that the post was taken down because replies directed at Chuang were becoming increasingly hostile. The firm did not want its statement to draw more attention or negativity toward her, the spokesperson said.

Hack co-founder Alexander Pack said on X on Wednesday: "We have not spoken to her directly for over 10 months, and we are 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."

The crypto community pays tribute

Her death brought tributes from crypto founders, developers and former colleagues. Many of them remembered her work organizing industry events and supporting early-stage projects.

Before joining Hack VC, she held growth roles at Stellar and Solana, worked on the fully homomorphic encryption project Fhenix, and founded Dystopia Labs, an events and developer community.

What remains unclear

The cause of death has not been announced, and no autopsy results have been made public. Authorities have not described the circumstances in which she was found.

Chuang's account of her treatment at Hack VC is an allegation. Neither her claims nor Hack VC's response to them have been independently verified by the supplied sources.

It is also not established that her death and her public statements about the firm are connected in any way.

What happens next

The California Highway Patrol's Inland Division is handling the investigation, according to the CHP spokesperson. The available sources do not say when more information, including a cause of death, may be released.

Sources

• CoinDesk