AI is changing how teams work, but Dan Zhang isn’t interested in using it just to make people 20% more productive. She’s thinking much bigger—about what becomes possible when AI can take on the work that used to be limited by time, resources, and bandwidth.

On this episode of Ventured Growth, Catherine Jhung and Tyler Wu sit down with Dan, CFO and Chief Business Officer at ClickUp, to talk about how she’s helping build a truly AI-native organization. Dan shares what ClickUp has learned from rolling out AI across the business—including why simply adding AI to existing processes didn’t work, and why they ended up “firing” thousands of AI agents.

She also gets into her own approach to AI. Despite coming from a non-technical background, Dan has built an AI workforce that can execute multiple projects in parallel, challenge her thinking, and even act as an extension of how she makes decisions.

Topics include:

• Building and managing an AI workforce
• Why ClickUp fired thousands of AI agents
• Moving from individual automation to AI orchestration
• Creating AI governance that actually works
• Where CFOs should focus their AI investments
• Why knowing exactly what you want may be the most valuable skill in the AI era
• And more…

As CFO and Chief Business Officer at ClickUp, Dan Zhang leads finance, accounting, corporate development, HR, legal, and strategic initiatives. Her approach combines the agility and grit of startup leadership with the rigorous operational discipline of scaling up. She enjoys building teams of operators that accelerate growth to consistently deliver outcomes and financial results. Dan is helping lead the company’s AI efforts and rethink how teams use AI across the organization.

This podcast is produced by Hercules Capital, Inc. (“Hercules”) for informational purposes only. Views expressed are the speakers’ own as of the recording date and do not necessarily reflect those of Hercules or its affiliates. Nothing here is investment, legal, or tax advice, an offer or commitment to provide financing, or an offer of any security. Guests may be associated with current, former, or prospective Hercules portfolio companies. Their appearance is not an endorsement, and they are not compensated.