Maria Kochmola loves to hike and prefers to live a minimalist lifestyle, so you may be surprised to learn she has a fully decked out gaming set-up in her sparsely decorated New York City apartment. It makes sense, though: she is the co-founder of The Games Fund, which invests solely in early-stage companies operating in the gaming industry.

Kochmola founded the New York-based firm with Ilia Eremeev in 2020, and they were later joined by Ilya Karpinskiy. The trio met at MGVC, the corporate venture capital arm of European game studio My.Games. The Games Fund closed its debut fund at $50 million in April 2021 with backing from Avi and Gabi Shalel, co-founders of game developer Plarium, and Lev Leviev, founder of European social network VK.com.

Favorite activity outside of work?

I’m a big fan of extreme hikes. I did the Grand Canyon, and in South Africa I did a number of amazing hikes, including Tabletop Mountain and Lion’s Head. I also got into surfing recently, I’m not very good yet but it’s a good type of meditation for me.

What’s the most unusual thing in your home?

I’m trying to be minimalist, but the unique thing is I have a very professional gamer set-up. I have a gaming PC, a PlayStation, a Steam Deck and a bunch of smartphones on all different platforms.

What career advice would you give your younger self?

Have more courage and don’t set limits on yourself. There are many more possibilities in this world than you can imagine.

What have you accomplished in your career that you’re most proud of?

Launching the fund. I started when I was very young and was one of the few female fund managers at the time, especially in this industry, which has always been perceived as a male-oriented industry.

Last book you read and would you recommend (why/why not)?

Shoe Dog by Phil Knight. It’s one of my favorites. I think every entrepreneur should read it. From one side, it’s very encouraging for anyone that wants to start their business. But it’s also very honest about the extreme pressure and a life full of challenges for the founder of a business.

Will you retire early, late or never?

I think never rather than early. I want to be the person to lay on the beach and sip cocktails all day, but I also want freedom to be occupied by my favorite work at my own pace.