Julien David Nitlech

Julien-David Nitlech is a Managing Partner at Iris Capital, a pan-European venture capital firm headquartered in Paris. He joined IRIS as a Principal in 2013, was promoted to Partner in 2016, and became Managing Partner in 2019. He is primarily responsible for the firm's early-stage investments in France and Germany, with a concentrated interest in AI, deep tech, and Industry 4.0.

Before joining Iris Capital, Nitlech launched and grew the European activities of Apperian, a US-based startup that built and marketed a cloud-based mobile application management (MAM) platform. Earlier, he began his career in the United States, leading business development for Orange, the French telecommunications operator. In that role he negotiated strategic partnerships between Orange and network vendors, managed the company's global device portfolio across B2C and B2B markets, and helped establish BuyIn, the procurement joint venture between Orange and Deutsche Telekom.

Nitlech is a doubly-trained engineer. He holds a Master's in Digital Telecommunications, Fluid Dynamics and Electronics from École Polytechnique (Paris) and a Master's in Computer Science from Télécom ParisTech (Paris). This technical grounding is consistent with his stated preference for AI, deep tech, and industrial technology companies.

He is a recurring speaker and voice on the European tech scene, appearing at events such as VivaTech and on French-language startup podcasts discussing his portfolio and investment approach.

• Invests at the early stage (Seed through Series B), concentrating on France and Germany within a broader European mandate.
• Core themes: artificial intelligence, deep tech, Industry 4.0 / robotics, enterprise SaaS, and cybersecurity — sectors where a strong engineering moat matters.
• Backs technically differentiated founders building infrastructure-grade or industrially significant products (his own posts emphasize "tech as infrastructure").
• Track record spans both venture wins and successful exits (LeanIX to SAP, Mailjet to Mailgun, Monk to ACV), signaling a focus on companies that can reach scale acquisition or category leadership.
• Engineering background (École Polytechnique, Télécom ParisTech) means he can go deep on the technical substance of a company, not just the market narrative.