Tianyi "Joe" Zhu 

Co-Founder and Partner
Heartland Trade Enterprises

Tianyi “Joe” Zhu is an entrepreneur and investor recognized for his leadership in international trade, cross-border development, and community advocacy.

As Co-Founder and Partner of Heartland Trade Enterprises, Joe spearheads business development across multiple U.S. states while managing technology investments in the oil and gas sector. During the pandemic, Heartland played a critical role by procuring PPE for multiple state including nearly all of the State of Oklahoma’s PPE supplies.

Previously, Joe served as Managing Partner of Playground Capital, a private equity firm established in joint venture with Nanjing Wande Group, China’s largest playground manufacturer. Under his leadership, the firm expanded North American operations and forged a landmark alliance with the region’s leading playground manufacturer.

With over a decade of experience as an angel investor, Joe co-founded West Suburban Angels, helping grow it into one of Chicago’s premier investment networks. He also co-founded SmartHealth Activator, supporting biomedical startups in collaboration with federal health institutions. This work culminated in the creation of a $50 million, 100,000-square-foot Biotech Innovation Park with Rosalind Franklin University — generating jobs and driving economic growth through strategic partnerships.

Joe’s impact has been recognized through honors such as Chicago United’s Business Leaders of Color Award and the Asian-American Business Development Corporation’s “Top 50 Outstanding Asian Americans in Business.” In 2020, he was named to the NAAPPPA Top 40 Asian Pacific Americans Under 40 in Politics & Public Affairs list.

A passionate advocate for Asian American leadership, Joe serves as National Co-Chair of the Leaders Forum, a bipartisan network launched at the White House in 2014. He was also one of fifteen leaders nationwide selected to serve on the Millennial Debt Commission in Washington, D.C., and has acted as an Ambassador for the National Asian American Chamber of Commerce (National ACE).

Beyond his professional accomplishments, Joe is a former professional boxer, competing in the 2008 Chinese Olympic Trials and winning the 2006 International Kickboxing Federation’s World Amateur Thai Boxing Championship.