James Robinson
Founder and General Partner
RRE Ventures
Co-founder and General Partner at RRE Ventures with a focus on network effects, intelligence, decentralization, fintech, and crypto.
Bio
Professional summary
Stuart Ellman is a Founder and General Partner at RRE Ventures. RRE’s official profile says he co-founded the firm with Jim Robinson in 1994 and is currently a director of Anomaly, Domain Money, Fi, Groups, Lucy, and Originalis. His past investments include Business Insider, Proofpoint, Clarity Money, Kroll Bond Ratings, Venmo, Clearpath Robotics, Concur, Prove, VTS, Betaworks, MessageOne, GIPHY, Dots, Ember, WatchGuard, Bark, and Bread Financial. The profile also notes his involvement with Columbia Business School, Brown University’s Nelson Center Advisory Council, Wesleyan University’s Board of Trustees, and 92nd Street Y leadership. He previously worked at Morgan Stanley, McKinsey, and Dillon Read and holds a BA in Economics from Wesleyan University and an MBA with Distinction from Harvard University.
Investment focus
Stage, sector, and overall fit
Stage
early stageventure
Sector
AIconsumerenterprise SaaSfintechhealthcaremediarobotics
Thesis
AI, consumer, enterprise/SaaS, fintech, healthcare, media, and roboticsEarly-stage venture investing
Notable companies
Selected portfolio companies the partner has backed
AnomalyBarkBusiness InsiderClarity MoneyClearpath RoboticsDomain MoneyFiGIPHYProofpointProveVenmoVTSWatchGuard
How to approach
Framing and angles for outreach
Pitch framing
Relevant for broad early-stage technology companies, especially those crossing consumer, fintech, enterprise software, media, or robotics.
Personalization hooks
- 1Mention his long-standing role as RRE co-founder and his broad portfolio across New York technology companies.
- 2For pet or consumer startups, his Bark and Fi history may be a relevant hook.
Recent signals
What the partner has said or done recently
RRE profile says he has served on Wesleyan University's Board of Trustees since 2022.
RRE profile says he was named to Insider's Best Early-Stage Investor list for 2021, 2022, and 2023.
Background
Career, education, and skills
Career history
- RRE VenturesCo-Founder & General Partner1994–present
- Columbia Business SchoolAdjunct Professor2003–2018
- 92nd Street YPresident, then Chairman
- Morgan StanleyAnalyst/Associate
- McKinsey & CompanyConsultant
- Dillon Read & Co.Analyst
Education
- Harvard Business SchoolMBA with Distinction
- Wesleyan UniversityBA
Skills
early-stage investingenterprise softwareconsumerfintechmediaboard leadership
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