Company Profile is an initiative by StartupTalky to publish verified information on different startups and organizations. The content in this post has been approved by AppLovin.
Over the last two decades, mobile apps have become an integral part of our lives. The growth of mobile app ecosystems has benefited mobile app users but makes it challenging for developers to scale and succeed in a highly competitive market.
Most developers find it difficult to access marketing, monetization, and data analytics tools necessary to stand out among the 4.8M+ mobile apps available on Google Play and Apple App Store.
AppLovin is a global mobile technology platform that offers mobile app developers a robust, integrated set of solutions to scale up their businesses. Here you will learn everything about AppLovin, from its startup story and founders to funding, investment, acquisitions, products, and growth.
AppLovin – Company Highlights
| Company Name | AppLovin |
|---|---|
| Headquarters | Palo Alto, California, United States |
| Sector | Mobile Technology |
| Founders | Adam Foroughi, John Krystynak, and Andrew Karam |
| Founded In | 2012 |
| Valuation | $29.6 billion(2022) |
| Website | Applovin.com |
AppLovin – About
AppLovin – Founders and Team
AppLovin – Startup Story
AppLovin – Mission and Vision
AppLovin – Business Model
AppLovin – Products and Services
AppLovin – Challenges Faced
AppLovin – Funding and Investment
AppLovin – Mergers and Acquisitions
AppLovin – Patents and Trademarks
AppLovin – Growth
AppLovin – Partners
AppLovin – Awards and Achievements
AppLovin – Competitors
AppLovin – About
AppLovin is a mobile technology company enabling developers to market, monetize, analyze, and publish their applications via its mobile advertising, marketing, and analytics platforms. The company helps businesses deliver personalized experiences on a global scale.
With 19 offices in the US, UK, China, Germany, Japan, South Korea, and other countries, AppLovin is headquartered in Palo Alto, California. More than 10K developers are using the company’s software, with 14B+ Downloads and 6PB+ data being processed daily.
Apoorva Bajj
AppLovin – Founders and Team
Adam Foroughi, John Krystynak, and Andrew Karam are the founders of AppLovin.
Adam Foroughi
Adam Foroughi attended the University of California, Berkeley, to complete Business Administration. Additionally, he graduated with Bachelor’s in Business from the University of California, Berkeley, Haas School of Business.
He co-founded Social Hour and has been its CEO. Moreover, he is the ex-CEO of Style Page, Inc. and an ex-Board Member at PlayPhone. Currently, he is the Co-Founder and CEO at AppLovin.
John Krystynak
John Krystynak graduated from the University of California, Santa Barbara, in Computer Science. He has worked as Product Management Director at NetGravity and Product Marketing Director at VMware.
In addition, he has been the Engineering Director at SocialMedia.com and CTO at Social Hour. Presently, Krystynak is the Co-Founder and CTO at AppLovin.
Andrew Karam
Andrew Karam attended Tufts University to complete his BA and BS in Economics and Chemical Engineering. He has co-founded two companies, i.e., Social Hour and Style Page, Inc. Moreover, he is the ex-Senior Products Director at Social Hour and Products VP at Style Page, Inc.
Karam has been working as AppLovin’s Co-Founder and VP of New Initiatives since 2011.
AppLovin currently employs more than 800 employees.
AppLovin – Startup Story
AppLovin was founded by Adam Foroughi, Andrew Karam, and John Krystynak in 2012. Foroughi stated that the company’s name ‘AppLovin’ was derived from Bloglovin, a content-organizing company. It operated in stealth mode until 2014 when Angle investors- Streamlined Ventures and the Webb Investment Network invested $4 million.
AppLovin launched its Lion Studios in July 2018 to publish and promote mobile developers’ games. In March 2021, the company filed for an IPO to raise $100 million. And one month later, AppLovin was established as a public organization, trading under the ticker APP.
AppLovin – Mission and Vision
AppLovin aims to grow the app ecosystem.
AppLovin – Business Model
AppLovin assists mobile app developers, particularly mobile game developers, in their success by solving critical marketing and monetizing challenges. Developers can use the company’s technologies and scaled distribution system to manage, optimize, and analyze their marketing investments and improve their apps’ monetization.
AppLovin – Products and Services
AppLovin provides multiple products, including AppDiscovery, MAX, Array, AppLovin Exchange, Adjust, and SparkLabs.
AppLovin – Challenges Faced
With macro headwinds impacting the mobile gaming industry, AppLovin faces a challenging operating environment. Moreover, the company is still dealing with a post-pandemic decline in consumer spending habits and economic slowdown.
AppLovin – Funding and Investment
AppLovin raised $1.6 billion by conducting 8 funding rounds. Its latest funding round – Post-IPO Equity Round, was conducted on March 9, 2022, and raised a total of $185.8 million. 10 investors back the company; the main ones are Sadik Ventures, Elysium Venture Capital, and Kohlberg Kravis Roberts.
| Date | Round | Number of Investors | Money Raised | Lead Investor |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| March 9, 2022 | Post-IPO Equity | – | $185 million | – |
| August 5, 2020 | Private Equity Round | 3 | – | – |
| July 17, 2018 | Private Equity Round | – | $400 million | Kohlberg Kravis Roberts |
| February 1, 2018 | Convertible Note | – | – | – |
| November 21, 2017 | Debt Financing | 2 | $841 million | Orient Hontai Capital |
| January 1, 2017 | Private Equity Round | 2 | $140 million | Orient Hontai Capital |
| July 31, 2014 | Seed Round | 3 | $4 million | – |
| December 11, 2012 | Pre-Seed Round | 1 | – | – |
Furthermore, AppLovin made 2 investments:
| Announced Date | Organization Name | Lead Investor | Funding Round | Money Raised |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| May 24, 2020 | Redemption Games | – | Corporate Round | – |
| May 5, 2019 | Belka Games | – | Corporate Round | – |
AppLovin – Mergers and Acquisitions
AppLovin acquired 9 companies, and these are:
| Company | Announced Date | Price |
|---|---|---|
| Wordle | May 3, 2022 | – |
| Wuri | February 28, 2022 | $430 million |
| MoPub | October 6, 2021 | $1.1 billion |
| Adjust | February 3, 2021 | $1 billion |
| Machine Zone | May 14, 2020 | $500 million |
| SafeDK | July 9, 2019 | – |
| Belka Games | May 5, 2019 | – |
| MAX, Inc | September 5, 2018 | – |
| moboqo | October 9, 2014 | – |
AppLovin – Patents and Trademarks
AppLovin is registered with 2 trademarks, with ‘Advertising; Business’ being the most popular class.
AppLovin – Growth
Revenue of AppLovin from 2020-2022:
| Year | Amount | Percentage Change from Last Year |
|---|---|---|
| 2022 | $2.817 billion | +0.86% |
| 2021 | $2.793 billion | +92.48% |
| 2020 | $1.451 billion | +45.97% |
Moreover, the company’s operating income was $48 million and its net income was $193 million in 2022. In the same year, it was valued at $29.6 billion. AppLovin’s employee count increased by -7%, and the website’s monthly visits growth rate is 9.14%, with 143,579,215 visits per month.
AppLovin – Partners
AppLovin’s industry-leading partners are:
- Aarki
- AdColony
- Bidease
- BeesWax
- Adikteev
- Adjust
- Amazon Publisher Services (APS)
- Criteo
- Dataset
- IAB Tech Lab
- Lifestreet
- Liftoff
AppLovin – Awards and Achievements
AppLovin has been rewarded with multiple awards during its lifetime, and some of these are:
- ‘Best Overseas Game Company’ Award by the Golden Team Awards in 2020
- Ranked on Pocket Gamer’s Top 50 Mobile Game Makers’ list in 2020
- Recognized on the San Francisco Business Times “40 Under 40′ list in 2017
- Ranked 10th on the Deloitte Fast 500 North America list in 2016 and 2018
AppLovin – Competitors
Some of AppLovin’s main competitors are:
- Celtra
- AdRoll
- Demandbase ABM/ABX Cloud
- Smartly.io
- Marin Software
- Chartboost
- Appodeal
- Vungle
- MOLOCO
FAQs
What doe AppLovin do?
AppLovin is a mobile technology company enabling developers to market, monetize, analyze, and publish their applications via its mobile advertising, marketing, and analytics platforms. The company helps businesses deliver personalized experiences on a global scale.
Who are the founders of AppLovin?
Adam Foroughi, John Krystynak, and Andrew Karam founded AppLovin in 2012.
Who are the main competitors of AppLovin?
Some of AppLovin’s main competitors are:
- Celtra
- AdRoll
- Demandbase ABM/ABX Cloud
- Smartly.io
- Marin Software
- Chartboost
- Appodeal
- Vungle
- MOLOCO