- She was born and raised in Honolulu, Hawaii.
- She is of Chinese, Japanese, and Irish descent.
- She was born on January 5, 1968 (age 48).
- She has a B.A. degree in world arts and cultures.
- CAI, who speaks Japanese, lived in Tokyo from 1986 to 1988 and was a popular singer.
- She released three singles and hosted weekly radio and television series.
- She was a backup dancer on the television series In Living Color. She also performed with Norman Iceberg, Viktor Manoel, Luca Tommassini and Madonna.
- She directs, writes, and edits films.
- She dated Artem Chigvintsev from 2006 to 2008.
- On the March 31, 2011 episode of Live with Regis and Kelly, Regis Philbin was "answering" a letter asking for advice on how to propose. The lights dimmed just before Inaba's boyfriend, Jesse Sloan, appeared on stage. With violinists playing in the background, Sloan, bent on one knee, asked for Inaba's hand, to which she responded "Yes! I will marry you!"
- In September 2012, a representative for DWTS announced that Inaba and Sloan had amicably ended their engagement.
- She is legally blind, having a vision of 20/750 which is corrected with glasses and contact lenses.
- She also suffers from spinal stenosis.
- She has expressed a great love and respect for animals, supporting organizations such as the Humane Society of the United States and PETA, and launching the Carrie Ann Animal Foundation in 2012.
