At 17, Richard Lui chose cookies over college—a decision that launched one of journalism’s most unconventional careers. He landed a role at then-startup Mrs. Fields Cookies, becoming the youngest person in company history to run a regional training center.
That entrepreneurial start led to degrees from City College of San Francisco, UC Berkeley, and an MBA from the University of Michigan. His business career includes time at Citibank, Oliver Wyman; a fintech patent; and launching six tech brands over three business cycles. Success in business, however, wasn’t enough.
Despite an established career and a consulting job waiting in New York, Lui pivoted to journalism. “I called my parents to tell them I was going to give up the job I went to business school for, and they laughed, saying they always knew I was an odd one,” Lui recalled. The gamble paid off spectacularly.
Today, Lui is a breaking news anchor at MSNBC and NBC News—and an Emmy and Peabody winner. In 2007, he became the first Asian American male to anchor a daily national news broadcast, maintaining that pioneering role uninterrupted for two decades.
But Lui’s most personal work happens behind the camera. His Oscars- and Grammy-qualifying documentaries “Sky Blossom” (2021) and “Unconditional” (2023) earned rare premieres at the White House, U.S. Congress, and United Nations. Both films explore caregiving, reflecting his own experience as a caregiver. His bestselling book “Enough About Me” from HarperCollins Zondervan advocates for selflessness as an antidote to social divisions. His philanthropic work has been recognized with civil rights honors from the NEA, Asian American Journalists Association (Suzanne Ahn Award), and Asian Americans Advancing Justice. Lui continues this work with two additional feature-length films in production, a groundbreaking AI data platform for the global care economy, and philanthropic partnerships with governments, multinational corporations, and NGOs.
Born in San Francisco to a Presbyterian pastor turned social worker father and school teacher mother, service runs in Lui’s DNA. As a National Association of Corporate Directors Fellow, he has served on boards focused on AI, gender equity, and human trafficking. He’s also a celebrity ambassador for the Alzheimer’s Association, AARP, Plan International, Hilarity for Charity, and Caring Across Generations.
Lui’s storytelling has been shaped by his family’s immigrant journey. His paternal grandfather arrived from Southern China as a “paper son”—using fraudulent documents to bypass exclusion laws—and worked as a restaurant worker, then barber. His mother’s line includes generations of laborers who helped build America’s economy. As a first-generation Chinese and Polynesian American, Lui uses his platform to connect communities and challenge harmful stereotypes of Asian Americans and others, in line with the work done at the Committee of 100. “Since elementary school, I’ve tried to understand how the US and China are linked—for myself and for the future,” said Lui.
From baked goods to eye-opening broadcasts, Lui has proven that the most meaningful careers often begin with the most unexpected choices.