François Robinet

Managing Partner at avp

Reviewed Updated May 1, 2026

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Location Paris, France
Check Size $3M-$50M+ (across AVP Venture, Early Growth, Growth strategies)
Last Verified Investment Alice & Bob (Series B) — Jan 28, 2025
Social LinkedIn
Stage Focus
seed series-a growth late-stage
Sector Focus
enterprise-software fintech insurtech digital-health consumer quantum-computing

Background

François Robinet is the Founder and Managing Partner of AVP (Atlantic Vantage Point), the global investment platform that was previously known as AXA Strategic Ventures (2015) and AXA Venture Partners, and that rebranded to AVP as an independent firm following a management buyout from AXA in 2024–2025 1234. Robinet founded the firm in 2015 as the venture capital arm of insurer AXA and has served as Managing Partner since 145.

Prior to founding AVP, Robinet spent most of his career at AXA Group. He was the first Chief Risk Officer of AXA, served as CEO of AXA Rosenberg (a quantitative-equity joint venture between AXA and the Rosenberg founding team in San Francisco), and was Managing Director / CEO of AXA Life Invest, where he led a turnaround of the life insurance entity after the 2008 financial crisis 126. AXA’s own corporate profile lists him as Managing Partner of AXA Strategic Ventures and CEO of AXA Life Invest 6.

Robinet holds a Master of Science from Stanford University’s School of Engineering, a master’s degree from ENSAE Paris Tech (École Nationale de la Statistique et d’Administration Économique), and a PhD from the Centre des Hautes Études d’Assurances (CHEA). He is an actuary by training 265.

In August 2024, Robinet led AVP’s management team in negotiating a buyout of AXA’s 70% stake in the firm 34. The transaction closed before the end of 2024 and the firm completed its public rebrand to AVP (Atlantic Vantage Point) in April 2025, simultaneously announcing that the European Investment Fund had joined as a co-anchor in AVP Growth Fund I (€1.5B) under the European Tech Champions Initiative 73. AVP now manages more than €2.5B across four investment strategies — Venture, Early Growth, Growth, and Fund Investing — from offices in Paris, New York, and London 738.

Robinet was named to Global Corporate Venturing’s Powerlist in both 2022 and 2024, recognizing him among the leading corporate venturing professionals globally 25. He was also listed in Institutional Investor’s Fintech Finance 35 (2015) and Fintech Finance 40 (subsequent year) 910.

Stated Thesis

Robinet publicly frames AVP’s mission as building a transatlantic platform that supports technology companies across the full lifecycle. At the firm’s rebrand he said AVP aims to be “best-in-class” for investors by supporting tech companies “from early stages to IPO, in Europe and in North America” 7.

At AVP’s five-year mark, he summarized the platform’s evolution: “In five years, AVP has delivered on its initial vision and has become a global investment platform in technology, capable of helping create world-class technology leaders in Europe and in the US” 5.

On the management buyout, Robinet said: “Today marks an incredible milestone for AVP and its team, and we feel both humbled and excited by this opportunity” 4.

On quantum computing — a sector AVP has publicly entered through Alice & Bob — Robinet has framed AVP’s view as moving beyond R&D toward industrial application: “We have been following the field of quantum computing for a long time at AVP and we are now convinced that quantum computing is leaving the pure R&D space and is entering into an ‘industrial’ phase to soon address ‘real-life’ use cases” 11.

AVP at the firm level publicly describes itself as “a multi-stage platform that combines global reach with local expertise,” with active engagement as a minority investor at the growth stage, focused on four sectors: enterprise software, fintech/insurtech, digital health, and consumer technology 8.

Inferred Thesis

This analysis is based on 12 portfolio companies where Robinet is publicly named as the AVP partner with an investor or board-member role, as listed on Signal/NFX’s tracking of his personally-attributed deals and cross-referenced against firm announcements 121314. AVP’s full portfolio is materially larger (60+ direct investments firm-wide); the percentages below should be read as directional for Robinet’s personal attribution rather than statistically definitive 78.

Sector distribution (12 verified personally-attributed companies): - Insurtech / fintech infrastructure: 4 of 12 (33%) — Baobab Group (micro/SME finance, Africa & Asia), Futurae (authentication), SecurityScorecard (security ratings), Unlatch (real-estate transaction software) 1215 - Digital health: 2 of 12 (17%) — Vida Health (virtual care platform), Incepto (AI for medical imaging) 12 - Enterprise software / developer infrastructure: 3 of 12 (25%) — AxonIQ (event-driven microservices), InsideBoard (AI digital adoption), Tracktor (B2B tracking) 1216 - Consumer / commerce: 2 of 12 (17%) — Veesual (AI virtual try-on for fashion), Bene Bono (online seasonal produce) 175 - Deep tech / quantum: 1 of 12 (8%) — Alice & Bob (cat-qubit quantum computing) 11

Stage distribution: Robinet’s personally-attributed deals span the full AVP stack. Verified entry points include seed (Veesual $7.5M seed, 2024), Series B (Alice & Bob €100M, 2025), and earlier-stage venture rounds at AxonIQ, Vida Health, Baobab, and Incepto 111712. AVP’s overall check-size band runs from $3M to $50M+ across Venture/Early Growth/Growth, with Robinet personally engaged at both ends 98.

Geographic focus: Mixed transatlantic, skewing toward Europe for Robinet’s personal portfolio. Of the 12 personally-attributed companies, at least 5 are France/Europe-headquartered (Alice & Bob, Veesual, Bene Bono, Incepto, Unlatch, with Baobab Africa-focused) and the remainder are US (Vida Health, SecurityScorecard, Qloo) or international (Futurae — Switzerland; AxonIQ — Netherlands) 111712. This is consistent with Robinet’s Paris seat at the head of the firm; US growth-stage deals at AVP are more commonly attributed to General Partner Alex Scherbakovsky in New York 18.

Founder profile patterns: The personally-attributed portfolio skews to category-defining technical founders in regulated or scientifically rigorous domains — quantum hardware (Alice & Bob), medical imaging AI (Incepto), authentication (Futurae), security ratings (SecurityScorecard). This is consistent with Robinet’s own actuarial / risk-management background.

Co-investor patterns: Across personally-attributed deals, frequent co-investors include Bpifrance and Future French Champions / FFC (Alice & Bob Series B), Techstars (Veesual seed), and a long tail of European seed/Series A funds. AVP’s Alice & Bob co-lead with Bpifrance and FFC is the clearest signal of Robinet’s European-sovereign-capital relationships 11.

Notable patterns vs. stated thesis: AVP’s firm-level thesis lists four sectors equally (enterprise software, fintech/insurtech, digital health, consumer). Robinet’s personally-attributed track record adds a fifth meaningful theme — deep tech / scientific computing — exemplified by Alice & Bob, which is not a headline sector on AVP’s website but receives Managing-Partner attention. The Baobab board seat (microcredit in Africa and Asia) also signals a sustainable-finance interest that is not part of AVP’s stated commercial thesis 1411.

Portfolio

Company Year Stage Source
Vida Health ~2017 (founding-year proxy) Series — (AVP participation, Robinet board) 12
AxonIQ ~2017 (founding-year proxy) Venture (AVP participation, Robinet investor) 12
InsideBoard ~2018 (founding-year proxy) Venture (AVP participation) 12
Incepto ~2019 (founding-year proxy) Venture (AVP participation) 12
SecurityScorecard ~2017 (founding-year proxy) Growth (AVP participation) 12
Unlatch ~2019 (founding-year proxy) Venture (AVP participation) 12
Futurae Technologies ~2018 (founding-year proxy) Venture (AVP participation) 12
Baobab Group ~2018 (founding-year proxy) Board director, microcredit 1214
Tracktor ~2017 (founding-year proxy) Venture (AVP participation) 12
Veesual 2024-04-17 Seed ($7.5M, AVP-led with Techstars) 17
Bene Bono ~2022 (founding-year proxy) Venture (AVP participation) 5
Qloo ~2017 (founding-year proxy) Venture (AVP / AXA Strategic Ventures participation) 10
Alice & Bob 2025-01-28 Series B (€100M, AVP co-lead with FFC and Bpifrance) 1119

This table represents 13 of an unknown larger set personally attributed to Robinet. AVP firm-wide has invested in 60+ direct technology companies since 2015 78. Years marked “founding-year proxy” indicate the company’s founding year is used where a contemporaneous round date for AVP’s specific investment could not be verified within the time budget for this profile.

In Their Own Words

“We have been following the field of quantum computing for a long time at AVP and we are now convinced that quantum computing is leaving the pure R&D space and is entering into an ‘industrial’ phase to soon address ‘real-life’ use cases, thanks to the technology that Alice & Bob has been developing. AVP is therefore proud to support the company in their mission to reduce the hardware requirements for building a practical, large-scale quantum computer.” — François Robinet, Alice & Bob Series B announcement, January 28, 2025 11

“Today marks an incredible milestone for AVP and its team, and we feel both humbled and excited by this opportunity.” — François Robinet, on AVP’s management buyout from AXA, August 1, 2024 4

“In five years, AVP has delivered on its initial vision and has become a global investment platform in technology, capable of helping create world-class technology leaders in Europe and in the US.” — François Robinet, GCV Powerlist 2022 5

“End-to-end encryption is a must for industries for which privacy of customer data is critical.” — François Robinet, Institutional Investor Fintech Finance 40 profile 10

What Founders Say

No independently sourced founder testimonials found. Press releases for AVP-led or co-led rounds where Robinet is the named partner (Alice & Bob, Veesual) include CEO quotes about the funding event but do not contain testimonial-style founder statements about the working relationship with Robinet specifically 1117.

Connections

  • AVP Managing Partner — Robinet sits atop the AVP partnership, alongside General Partners Manish Agarwal, Benoit Fosseprez, Elizabeth de Saint-Aignan, Alex Scherbakovsky, and Warda Shaheen, plus Partners Marc Lewden (COO), Sébastien Loubry (Business Development), and Dominic Maier (Head of Fund Investing) 20
  • Board, Baobab Group — director of the microcredit company operating in Africa and Asia 1412
  • Board, Vida Health — listed as director 12
  • Board, AxonIQ — listed as director 12
  • Board, Unlatch — listed as director 12
  • Advisory Board, FTV Capital — San Francisco-based fintech investment firm 6
  • Board roles within AXA — Robinet has been a board member of multiple AXA Group companies during his AXA career 6
  • Prior employer, AXA Group — first Chief Risk Officer of AXA; CEO of AXA Rosenberg (quantitative equity); CEO/MD of AXA Life Invest. AXA Group remains an anchor LP in AVP Growth Fund I 617
  • AVP–EIF relationship — European Investment Fund joined AVP Growth Fund I as a co-anchor LP in 2025 under the European Tech Champions Initiative; AVP is the only transatlantic platform selected for the initiative 7
  • Notable recent co-investors (Robinet-attributed deals) — Bpifrance and Future French Champions / FFC (Alice & Bob Series B); Elaia Partners, Breega, Supernova Invest, EIC (other Alice & Bob participants); Techstars (Veesual seed) 1117

Sources

  1. AVP, “About AVP,” accessed May 2026. https://avpcap.com/about-avp/↩↩↩↩

  2. Global Venturing, “Powerlist 2024: François Robinet,” accessed May 2026. https://globalventuring.com/corporate/people/powerlist-2024-francois-robinet/↩↩↩↩

  3. Silicon Canals, “AXA Venture Partners rebrands; EIF joins as anchor investor in €1.5B growth fund,” April 15, 2025. https://siliconcanals.com/axa-venture-partners-rebrands-eif-joins-investor/↩↩↩↩

  4. AVP, “Atlantic Vantage Point (AVP) leadership team acquires AXA’s stake in AVP,” August 1, 2024. https://avpcap.com/axa-venture-partners-avp-leadership-team-acquires-axas-stake-in-avp/↩↩↩↩↩

  5. Global Venturing, “GCV Powerlist 2022: François Robinet,” accessed May 2026. https://globalventuring.com/corporate/gcv-powerlist-2022-francois-robinet/↩↩↩↩↩↩↩

  6. AXA, “François Robinet” profile, accessed May 2026. https://www.axa.com/en/about-us/profile/francois-robinet↩↩↩↩↩↩

  7. Global Venturing, “AVP, Axa’s CVC, goes independent following management buyout,” accessed May 2026. https://globalventuring.com/corporate/corporate-venturer/avp-axas-cvc-goes-independent-following-management-buyout/↩↩↩↩↩↩↩

  8. AVP, “Companies” portfolio page, accessed May 2026. https://avpcap.com/companies/↩↩↩↩↩

  9. Institutional Investor, “The 2015 Fintech Finance 35: Francois Robinet, AXA Strategic Ventures,” accessed May 2026. https://www.institutionalinvestor.com/article/2bsuymq1wv4mmo5shjqww/portfolio/the-2015-fintech-finance-35-francois-robinet-axa-strategic-ventures↩↩

  10. Institutional Investor, “The Fintech Finance 40: François Robinet,” accessed May 2026. https://www.institutionalinvestor.com/article/2bsxioj4j5edd2zqjrojk/corner-office/the-fintech-finance-40-francois-robinet↩↩↩

  11. AVP, “Alice & Bob Closes €100M Series B,” January 28, 2025. https://avpcap.com/alice-bob-closes-e100m-series-b/↩↩↩↩↩↩↩↩↩↩

  12. Signal NFX, “Francois Robinet’s Investing Profile — AXA Strategic Ventures Managing Partner,” accessed May 2026. https://signal.nfx.com/investors/francois-robinet-asv↩↩↩↩↩↩↩↩↩↩↩↩↩↩↩↩↩↩↩

  13. AXA US, “AXA Launches Venture Capital Fund,” 2015. https://us.axa.com/news/2015/axa-announces-venture-capital-fund-launch.html↩

  14. UCB, “UCB Ventures and AXA Venture Partners: seeking innovation in digital health,” accessed May 2026. https://www.ucb.com/about-ucb/magazine/detail/article/ucb-ventures-and-axa-venture-partners-seeking-innovation-in-digital-health↩↩↩↩

  15. Coverager, “AXA Venture Partners’ leadership team acquires AXA’s stake in AVP,” accessed May 2026. https://coverager.com/axa-venture-partners-leadership-team-acquires-axas-stake-in-avp/↩

  16. The Org, “François Robinet — Founder and Managing Partner at AXA Venture Partners,” accessed May 2026. https://theorg.com/org/axa-venture-partners/org-chart/francois-robinet↩

  17. FinSMEs, “Veesual Raises $7.5M in Seed Funding,” April 17, 2024. https://www.finsmes.com/2024/04/veesual-raises-7-5m-in-seed-funding.html↩↩↩↩↩↩

  18. AVP, “Alex Scherbakovsky” partner profile, accessed May 2026. https://avpcap.com/avp/alex-scherbakovsky/↩

  19. Alice & Bob, “Alice & Bob Closes €100M Series B Led by Future French Champions (FFC), AVP and Bpifrance,” January 28, 2025. https://alice-bob.com/newsroom/alice-bob-100m-series-b-fundraising-press-release/↩

  20. AVP, “People at AVP,” accessed May 2026. https://avpcap.com/people/↩