Jean de La Rochebrochard
About Jean de La Rochebrochard
Jean de La Rochebrochard is based in Paris and runs Kima Ventures, the early-stage investment vehicle of Xavier Niel, founder of Free and Station F. Crunchbase dates his Kima role to September 2015. Before that he was a partner at the startup accelerator The Family from 2013 to 2015, and he started his career in investment banking, in corporate finance and M&A.
He is also a co-founder and partner at New Wave, a seed fund set up with Pia d'Iribarne. French Tech Journal reported it as a €56 million fund writing checks of €500,000 to €2 million. Crunchbase also lists him as Managing Partner at Cassius from November 2024. He has published on the Kima model, including a 2019 article on Kima as a high-frequency business angel.
Kima describes itself as the world's most active business angel. According to French Tech Journal, the team backs about 100 new companies a year and has around 1,000 startups in its portfolio. Sifted quotes him saying his job at Kima is to make sure every good deal in France has been funded by Kima at some point.
Kima's performance figures that he posted on LinkedIn (as of Q1 2023) put average annual investment at about 5M in 2010 to 2012, 10M in 2012 to 2015 and 15M from 2016 onward. His NFX Signal profile records seed investments in Sqreen (April 2016), Impala (April 2018) and Nabla (December 2019). Crunchbase lists board or advisor roles at Zenly, Payfit, Forest Admin, Ibanfirst, Sourced, Side and Impala.
The Lounge deals desk records one AI round: HrFlow.ai, a $7M round in April 2026. Press coverage describes it as a pre-Series A led by 115K and EmergingTech Ventures. It names Xavier Niel (Free, Kima, Station F) among existing investors. Crunchbase lists HrFlow.ai as his latest personal investment. HrFlow.ai is a Paris company building AI and data infrastructure for HR and labour-market data.
Kima's wider mandate includes AI alongside other sectors, so AI is one focus among several rather than a stated exclusive thesis.
Kima mostly does pre-seed and seed deals. Since 2018 it has aimed about 90% of its investments at French founders, according to French Tech Journal. His NFX profile says he invests mostly in French founders but stays open to exceptions.
NFX Signal lists a check range of $50K to $2.0M with a sweet spot of $150K, and his bio there says $100K to $2M. A third-party profile gives an average ticket of about €150,000. Sectors named in third-party profiles include SaaS, AI, fintech, consumer, deep tech and health tech.
On selection, Antoine Buteau's write-up describes his approach as centred on the founding team's psychology and ambition. Sifted reports that he replies to every email, including short passes.
- HrFlow.ai: AI and data infrastructure for HR data; $7M round in April 2026.
- Nabla: listed on NFX Signal as a seed investment, December 2019.
- Impala: listed on NFX Signal as a seed investment, April 2018; he also holds a board seat per Crunchbase.
- Sqreen: listed on NFX Signal as a seed investment, April 2016.
- Payfit, Zenly, Forest Admin: board roles listed on Crunchbase.
- signal.nfx.com/investors/jean-de-la-rochebrochard
- crunchbase.com/person/jean-de-la-rochebrochard
- startupintros.com/people/jean-de-la-rochebrochard
- sifted.eu/articles/brunch-kima-ventures-jean-de-la-rochebrochard
- frenchtechjournal.com/jean-de-la-r-kima-ventures-new-wave-and
- antoinebuteau.com/lessons-from-jean-de-la-rochebrochard
- shs.cairn.info/journal-de-l-ecole-de-paris-du-management-2019-4-page-2
- fr.linkedin.com/in/jeandlr
Investing activity
Jean de La Rochebrochard appears in 1 AI deal tracked by the Lounge deals desk. The rounds are mostly Seed, with a median round size of $7M. The most recent is HrFlow.ai (Seed, $7M, Apr 2026).
Jean de La Rochebrochard most often invests alongside EmergingTech Ventures, 115K, Sophie Serratrice and Jean-Baptiste Rudelle, and the companies they back on Lounge are mostly in AI.
Deals
Frequently asked questions about Jean de La Rochebrochard
Does Jean de La Rochebrochard invest in AI startups?
Yes. Kima's mandate includes AI among other sectors, and the Lounge deals desk records his $7M HrFlow.ai round in April 2026.
What check size does Jean de La Rochebrochard write?
NFX Signal lists a range of $50K to $2.0M with a sweet spot of $150K. A third-party profile cites an average ticket of about €150,000.
What stage does Jean de La Rochebrochard invest in?
Mainly pre-seed and seed through Kima Ventures. He also co-founded New Wave, a seed fund reported to write €500,000 to €2 million checks.
Does Jean de La Rochebrochard only back French founders?
Mostly, but not only. Kima has aimed about 90% of its investments at French founders since 2018, and his NFX bio says he is open to exceptions.
How is Jean de La Rochebrochard connected to Kima Ventures and Xavier Niel?
He is Managing Partner of Kima, which invests Xavier Niel's money in startups. Crunchbase dates his Kima role to September 2015.
How should founders approach Jean de La Rochebrochard?
His LinkedIn headline points to 2lr.com for an email-only sign-up. Sifted reports that he replies to every email, even if only to pass.
Is Jean de La Rochebrochard an angel investor?
Yes. Jean de La Rochebrochard invests personally as an angel.
What AI companies has Jean de La Rochebrochard invested in?
Jean de La Rochebrochard's AI investments include HrFlow.ai. The 1 round on Lounge are listed on this page with amounts, dates and co-investors.
What stage does Jean de La Rochebrochard invest at?
In the rounds tracked on Lounge, Jean de La Rochebrochard has invested at Seed, with a median round of $7M.
Who does Jean de La Rochebrochard co-invest with?
Jean de La Rochebrochard's most frequent co-investors on Lounge are EmergingTech Ventures (1 deal), 115K (1 deal), Sophie Serratrice (1 deal), Jean-Baptiste Rudelle (1 deal) and Domnin de Kerdaniel (1 deal).