Jens Hilgers

Jens is a Founding General Partner of BITKRAFT Ventures, a global early- and mid-stage investment platform for gaming, esports, and interactive media, which he started in 2015. Under his leadership, the firm has built a portfolio spanning more than 50 companies across North America, Europe, and Asia. BITKRAFT launched its inaugural $18M Pre-Seed Fund in 2017, and in 2020 raised a $165M Venture Fund I, featuring LPs including the family offices and investment firms of Bruce Karsh, David M. Rubenstein, and Jonathan Soros. Jens is also Co-Founder and Chairman of esports team G2 Esports, one of the world’s most valuable esports organizations. Widely considered one of esports’ first entrepreneurs, Jens launched his first esports online platform gamers.de in 1997, which he sold in 1999. In 2000, Jens founded ESL and grew the company into the world's most prestigious esports brand during his ten-year tenure as CEO. In 2015, international entertainment company MTG acquired a majority stake in ESL, marking the first acquisition of an esports company by a traditional media organization.