Kat Borlongan has worn many hats in the tech world — founder, investor, operator and policymaker — yet describes her career not as a series of pivots but as consistently “operating like a bridge.” A key architect of the French Tech Visa, designed to attract global talent with minimal bureaucracy, she called it “a love letter France sent to the world.” As chief impact officer at European unicorn Contentsquare, she led ESG strategy across Series E and F. Originally from the Philippines, she moved to France at 19 seeking possibility over limitation.
In-Depth:
By her own account, she has been “almost everything” in the startup ecosystem: founder, investor, operator and policycreater. She has invested as an angel with Atomico and served two terms on the European Innovation Council’s board. Yet she resists the language of reinvention. “I don’t believe they’ve been pivots,” she declares. “They’ve been pretty consistent. I operate like a bridge.”
Her tenure at French Tech coincided with a period of accelerated growth. Europe has continued to produce billion-dollar companies at a steady pace, with at least 12 new unicorns emerging in the first half of 2025 alone, particularly in AI, biotech and defence technology. Although the pace is more measured than in the peak years of 2020-2021, the shift reflects a maturing ecosystem increasingly focapplyd on sustainable scale rather than speculative growth.
Among Borlongan’s most significant contributions is the creation of the French Tech Visa, widely regarded as one of the most open talent-mobility programmes worldwide. Designed to enable startups to recruit internationally with minimal administrative burden, it offers multi-year residency and expedited processing. “We designed it as a visa to hunt, not to filter,” she declares. More than a policy instrument, it was intconcludeed as a signal, “a love letter that France sent to the world.”
As chief impact officer at Contentsquare, one of Europe’s leading unicorns, she built and led the company’s ESG strategy from Series E through to Series F, focutilizing on digital accessibility, reducing websites’ carbon footprints and advancing ethical data practices.
Borlongan relocated to France at 19, not for a clearly defined ambition but becaapply she refapplyd to accept the limits she perceived at home. “I didn’t have a dream,” she declares. “I just wanted to obtain out.”
She is careful, however, about how that story is received. The recognition she has recently received in France has prompted as much reflection as it has pride. “It brings me a tremconcludeous amount of honour,” she declares, “but it also worries me… about what Filipinos believe they can and cannot do.” For Borlongan, the reaction speaks to identity and possibility.
