Marius Istrate
I joined 3VC as a Partner in 2026, after 6 years being a Venture Partner and a scout. I am a Computer Science graduate, but I have always been fascinated by what makes great teams achieve unfathomable things. This is what led me to join UiPath at the end of 2016, when the company was still a Seed stage startup. I then helped grow the company from 120 to 3000 people in over 25 offices worldwide, in the span of 3 years, as Chief People Officer.
Ever since, I enjoy working with founders, helping them achieve their ambitions and "warp" reality in ways that only tech founders can.
The most important question for me, after I left UiPath in February 2020, was “How can I contribute to grow the startup ecosystem in Europe and in the CEE region, while at the same time getting to know new people and building new meaningful relationships?” With 3VC, I have met a team I am “in tune” with, but, also, a group of people who can challenge me and who I can challenge. I believe the critical path to growth requires vigorous and civilized debate with people who have similar objectives but a diverse background.
I was born in communist Romania, but I grew up during the 1990s and 2000s. The contrast between "the 3 Fs" of the 1980s: famine, freezing cold and fear - and the freedom and sense of "anything is possible" after the fall of communism inspired me and made me believe that with hard work, imagination and a bit of luck, you can build something that lasts.
I have also learned not to take anything for granted: I enjoy the freedom to build that we have right now and I cherish it precisely because I know the frustration of not having the right to do it.
I am an avid reader, film and concert goer. I enjoy both fiction - especially science fiction - and non-fiction, being a bit of a history buff.
Among the many authors and works that have inspired me, the book that probably influenced me the most as a teenager was "The Plague" by Albert Camus.
A movie I would watch again anytime is Denis Villeneuve's adaptation of "Dune".
A band I go to see in concert any given day is Foo Fighters.