Julie Zhu Leaves Apple After 8 Months of 13-Hour Days to Build Odd One In

Q: How did Julie Zhu navigate Apple's strict compliance rules to successfully build a six-figure startup on the side?

She did it by getting explicit internal clearance, keeping the startup outside Apple’s time, and delaying her exit until the side business could stand on its own. Before incorporating Odd One In, Julie Zhu said she checked with Apple’s business conduct team to confirm the artist-collectible startup would not conflict with her role at the company. That step was central to navigating Apple’s compliance rules: she sought approval in advance rather than building quietly and risking a policy breach. She then kept strict boundaries between the two jobs. Zhu worked on Odd One In only outside Apple hours, typically from about 6 to 8 a.m. and again in the evenings after her day job. For roughly eight months, she maintained that routine while employed full time, often working 13 to 14 hours a day. The arrangement allowed her to develop the company without overlapping with Apple responsibilities. At the same time, she reduced the risk of leaving too early. Zhu waited until she had a cofounder she trusted, a clearer business plan, family backing, and substantial personal runway from savings and Apple stock. She has said she wanted roughly three to five years of runway before quitting. By August 2025, once Odd One In needed more attention and she felt continuing both roles was unfair to her Apple team, she resigned. By then, the company had launched, gained early traction, and later generated close to six figures in annual revenue while remaining bootstrapped.

2 articles · Updated · Business Insider · Aug 27

Julie Zhu, 29, quit Apple in August 2025 after eight months of splitting roughly 13 to 14 working hours a day between her job and startup, Odd One In.
By the time she left, Zhu said the artist-collectible business needed more of her time and she had met the conditions she set first: a cofounder, a concrete idea, family backing and 3 to 5 years of financial runway.
Odd One In was incorporated in December 2024, and Zhu said she cleared the side venture with Apple's business conduct team before building it outside work hours.
The startup generated close to six figures in annual revenue last year, remains fully bootstrapped and is not yet paying Zhu a salary as profits are reinvested into production, warehousing and artist payments.
Zhu said delaying her exit made the jump feel less risky, pushing back on startup advice from about 95% of people she consulted who urged her to quit sooner.