Elise Hu

Elise Hu is a journalist, podcaster, author and host of TED Talks Daily, the flagship podcast from TED conferences, which features thought-provoking ideas on every subject imaginable.

Hu spent nearly a decade at NPR, appearing regularly on flagship shows such as "All Things Considered" and "Morning Edition," filing stories from more than a dozen countries as an international correspondent, and opening the organization’s Seoul bureau in 2015. Her experiences in Seoul inspired her debut nonfiction book, "Flawless: Lessons in Looks and Culture from the K-Beauty Capital," a nonfiction exploration of beauty, consumerism, and womanhood. "Flawless" was named among the Best Books of 2023 by Vox and was a recipient of Porchlight’s 2023 Best Business Book Awards.

Hu is also the co-founder of an LA-based podcast production company, Reasonable Volume. She previously worked as a TV correspondent at VICE News and has for many years been a host-at-large for the radio and digital network NPR, including exploring the future through a video show, "Future You, with Elise Hu." She joined NPR in 2011 after helping launch the digital news startup, The Texas Tribune, where she oversaw video, the flagship podcast and reported for their partners at The New York Times. Previously, she worked as a television reporter in Texas, South Carolina and Missouri.

An honors graduate of the University of Missouri-Columbia’s School of Journalism, Hu's work has earned a duPont-Columbia award, a Gannett Foundation Award for Innovation in Watchdog Journalism, a National Edward R. Murrow award for best online video, a Gracie Award for hosting, and a Webby award for podcasting. She is a board member at Grist and a member of the Council on Foreign Relations.