Mellody Hobson
Mellody Hobson is Ariel Investments’ co-CEO, the author of Priceless Facts about Money, and a financial literacy advocate who brings money conversations to families and young people.
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Mellody’s happenings, collected from public sources, plus their backstory and Starbook, where fans write.
Known for
Candlewick
TEDOverview
- From
- Chicago
- Education
- Princeton University, Class of 1991
- Work
- Investor, author and financial literacy advocate
- A public platform
- Color blind or color brave?, TED2014
Mini bio
How it started.
Hobson grew up in Chicago and began her Ariel career with a summer internship in 1989. After graduating from Princeton in 1991, she joined the firm, building a career that took her from its early ranks to co-CEO. Financial literacy became a public part of that work through contributions to ABC and CBS news programs.
A voice beyond finance.
Her 2014 TED talk, Color blind or color brave?, asked people to talk openly about race and to bring more diverse voices into hiring and everyday life. It offers a useful introduction to the ideas behind her public speaking.
Making money less mysterious.
In 2024, she published her first children’s book, Priceless Facts about Money, with illustrations by Caitlin Stevens. The book explains subjects including bartering, credit and banking through history, unusual facts and playful illustrations. Its publisher identifies it as an instant New York Times bestseller.
Building new things.
Alongside her role at Ariel, Hobson founded Project Level in 2025 to invest in women’s sports. She also co-chairs the Lucas Museum of Narrative Art. Her public conversations connect business with education, opportunity and the stories people tell.
Creditschronological, newest first
Books and talks
- 2024Priceless Facts about MoneyAuthor
- 2014Color blind or color brave?TED speaker
Business and civic work
- 2025Project LevelFounder
- 2021Ariel AlternativesFounder
Awards
Quotes
We can’t be color blind, we have to be color brave.Mellody Hobson, TED2014
From her talk about race and opportunity, reported by TED: https://blog.ted.com/be-color-brave-not-color-blind-mellody-hobson-at-ted2014/
Trivia
- Her daughter inspired Priceless Facts about Money, according to Candlewick’s author biography.
- Her book includes a cat and bunny who talk in money idioms.
- Her personal sports investments include the Denver Broncos and League One Volleyball, as she explained in her Project Level announcement.
- In 2020, she and the Hobson/Lucas Family Foundation made the lead gift for Hobson College, planned as Princeton’s first residential college named for a Black woman.
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