LeHibou

What LeHibou does

LeHibou SAS is a French two-sided marketplace operating a curated IT freelance staffing platform, founded in 2015 and headquartered in Boulogne-Billancourt. The company connects over 140,000 pre-vetted IT freelancers — averaging 15 years of experience — with more than 900 enterprise clients across France and Belgium, including approximately 70% of CAC 40 companies. The platform is organized into four commercial lines: the core LeHibou marketplace for IT project staffing; LeHibou Executive for C-level management de transition and senior consulting; LeHibou AI for AI/ML project staffing; and LeHibou Cybersecurity (formed via the December 2025 acquisition of Adonys Security). Enterprise clients access the platform through three Corporate tiers — Expert (full RFP handling with 48-hour profile delivery), Digitale (digital-focused), and Portage Administratif (contractual umbrella).

The underlying technology stack centers on a proprietary AI sourcing engine developed since 2015 that combines NLP-based CV parsing and skill matching with structured data analysis to surface qualified profiles. Human recruiters then conduct double interviews, reference checks, and HR validation, creating a hybrid AI-plus-human qualification layer. Enterprise clients additionally access a Freelance Management System (FMS) providing real-time KPI tracking, consolidated budget monitoring, and performance dashboards. For AI-specific engagements, the platform extends into production deployment capabilities spanning LLM architecture, MLOps/LLMOps, AI security, RAG pipelines, and agentic AI built with LangChain/LangGraph/LlamaIndex frameworks.

LeHibou's revenue model combines a transaction fee on each freelance placement (the dominant stream), premium managed services for Corporate tiers, and high-value professional services fees for executive consulting. Pricing is fully quote-based with multi-year enterprise contracts typical; 100% of missions are insured by Allianz. Distribution blends direct enterprise field sales for CAC 40/SBF 120 accounts, inside sales for mid-market, and self-serve onboarding for SMBs and individual freelancers. The company has raised funding from Ring Capital and was admitted to the French Tech Next40 program in June 2025, with reported revenue scaling from 52M€ (2023) to a projected 150M€ (2025).

Name

LeHibou

Legal name

LeHibou SAS

Website

https://lehibou.com

Company type

Private

Founded year

2015

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

51–100 employees

Short description

LeHibou is a French two-sided marketplace connecting 140,000+ vetted IT freelancers with 900+ enterprise clients, including ~70% of CAC 40 companies, generating ~150M€ in 2025 revenue via commission-based placements across its core platform, Executive, AI, and Cybersecurity sub-brands.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

IT Freelance Staffing & Talent Marketplace

NAICS

Computer Systems Design and Related Services (54151), Custom Computer Programming Services (541511), Management Consulting Services (54161)

SIC

Services-Help Supply Services (7363), Services-Management Consulting Services (8742), Services-Prepackaged Software (7372)

akta.pro primary industry

Professional & Business Services Marketplaces (Freelancers, SMB Services) (BPAMAHAG)

akta.pro secondary industries

B2B SaaS & Enterprise Personalization (CRM, Sales, Support) (HDAAAGAJ), End-to-End Enterprise AI Platforms (MLOps & Model Lifecycle Management) (HDAEANAA), Data, Analytics & AI Consulting (BPAHACAI)

Keywords

• IT freelance staffing
• Freelance management platform
• Talent marketplace
• IT consulting services
• Workforce management

Headquarters

HQ city

Boulogne-billancourt

HQ country

France

HQ region

Europe

Offices10 records

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Technology or R&D, Marketing or Sales, Others

Revenue model

1. Freelance Placement Commission: LeHibou acts as an intermediary between enterprises seeking IT freelancers and independent consultants. The platform earns revenue by taking a commission on each freelance placement made through its marketplace. Clients post missions or receive curated shortlists, and LeHibou handles contractualization and billing, earning a transaction fee on each engagement.
2. Corporate Managed Services: Premium enterprise services including the 'Expert' offering (full RFP handling with 48-hour profile delivery), 'Digitale' (digital placement services), and 'Portage Administratif' (administrative portage) — each with tailored service levels generating differentiated revenue streams.
3. Executive & Transformation Consulting Placement: LeHibou Executive connects enterprises with C-level transition managers and IT transformation consultants, charging premiums for high-value, long-duration engagements managed through dedicated teams.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion2 records

Distribution channels6 records

Marketing channels8 records

Core offering

LeHibou operates an AI-powered two-sided marketplace platform that connects enterprises with a curated pool of 140,000+ freelance IT consultants. The platform delivers end-to-end services including sourcing, matching, contractualization, billing, and a Freelance Management System (FMS) for engagement tracking. Specialized sub-offerings include LeHibou Executive for management de transition, LeHibou AI for AI/ML talent, and LeHibou Cybersecurity for cybersecurity consulting.

Product overview

LeHibou operates as a multi-brand platform portfolio for IT freelance staffing in France. The core LeHibou platform (140,000+ freelancers) serves as the main marketplace, supplemented by two specialized divisions: LeHibou Executive (2015) for management de transition and senior consulting with 4,000+ experts, and LeHibou AI (2024) providing access to 4,300 AI specialists. Corporate clients access three service tiers: Expert (full managed staffing), Digitale (digital-focused), and Portage Administratif (contract management). All offerings are backed by proprietary AI sourcing technology and a real-time FMS dashboard for enterprise KPI tracking.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• LeHibou Executive: Premium consulting service connecting enterprises with independent management transition and IT consulting experts. Part of LeHibou group offering higher-level executive talent.
• LeHibou AI
• LeHibou Cybersecurity

Products and services

• LeHibou Core Platform (IT Freelance Marketplace) AI-powered two-sided marketplace connecting enterprises with 140,000+ vetted freelance IT consultants across 12 IT specialties (Development, Data/AI, Cybersecurity, Cloud, DevOps, SAP, etc.). Includes dedicated Account Managers, Freelance Management System (FMS), contractualization, billing, and Allianz-backed professional liability insurance. Serves 900+ enterprise clients including 70% of CAC 40.
• LeHibou Executive Management de Transition division providing C-level interim managers (CIO, CDO, CFO, etc.) for transformation, restructuring, M&A integration, or crisis leadership mandates of 3 to 24 months. Targeted at large enterprises and private equity portfolio companies.
• LeHibou AI Specialized division offering AI/ML freelance talent (AI Engineers, Data Scientists, ML Engineers, AI Product Managers) for enterprises and startups deploying AI initiatives. Positions itself around AI Act compliance and responsible AI deployment.
• LeHibou Cybersecurity Cybersecurity division offering freelance cybersecurity consultants and expertise, following the acquisition of Cybersecurity factory (formerly Cybermakers). Expands LeHibou's specialty coverage to cybersecurity projects for enterprise clients.

Quantifiable outcome

• 92% of missions posted on LeHibou are filled
• +5 more outcomes

Named customers22 records

Segments5 records

Ideal customer profiles4 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

AI capability9 records

Feature4 records

Partnerships

Two partnerships are on record, tiered core and flagship.

• AllianzcoreOthersAllianz insures 100% of missions conducted through the LeHibou platform, providing risk coverage for both freelancers and enterprise clients engaged in technical assistance assignments.
• French Tech (Mission French Tech)flagshipStrategic or Co-development PartnerLeHibou is a member of the French Tech Next40 (2025) and was previously in French Tech 120 (2023-2024). The Mission French Tech provides visibility, networking with government and major tech leaders, and international promotion support.

Scale indicators15 records

Recent moves10 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Direct peers

• Freework: French IT freelance job board and marketplace. Directly competes for the same French IT freelancer and enterprise client base as LeHibou.
• Toptal: Premium global freelance platform focusing on top-tier software developers, designers, and finance experts. Targets similar enterprise clients with curated, vetted freelance talent.
• Malt: France-based freelance platform connecting IT/digital freelancers with enterprises. Most direct head-to-head competitor to LeHibou in the French SMB and enterprise IT staffing market.
• Andela: Global tech talent marketplace specializing in software engineers and increasingly AI/ML talent. Comparable enterprise GTM motion and talent-matching model to LeHibou.
• Comet.co (acquired by Toptal): Former French freelance IT platform that was acquired by Toptal. Directly comparable as a French tech freelance marketplace that has since consolidated with Toptal.

Broad incumbents

• Upwork: Global freelance marketplace covering IT, creative, and professional services. Public incumbent with broader scope but less enterprise curation than LeHibou's model.
• Fiverr: Public global freelance marketplace with broad professional services coverage. Less premium/enterprise-focused than LeHibou but addresses overlapping freelance demand.

Emerging players

• A.Team: Curated network of product builders and engineers forming on-demand teams for startups and enterprises. Comparable curated talent model for tech projects.
• Turing: Remote-first platform for sourcing vetted software developers and AI engineers. Highly relevant as an emerging competitor in the AI/ML talent space that LeHibou AI targets.

Others

• CodinGame (now part of Cegid): French tech talent assessment and recruitment platform. Adjacent as a tech-talent sourcing ecosystem player, recently integrated into Cegid's enterprise HR suite.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat6 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/LeHibouCom
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/lehiboucom
• Instagraminstagram.com/lehibou_com
• Facebookfacebook.com/leHiboucom

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles5 records

Subsidiaries1 record

Funding overview

Funding rounds1 record

Investors1 record

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A2 records

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about LeHibou