What changed
- First published. Figures current to AppLovin’s Q2 2026 results and the June 2026 launch of AppLovin Ads.
What does AppLovin do?
AppLovin runs an ad network for mobile apps. App developers use its software to sell their ad space, advertisers use it to buy that space, and its AI model Axon matches the two on every impression.
AppLovin was founded in 2012 by Adam Foroughi, who is still CEO, with John Krystynak and Andrew Karam. It is based in Palo Alto, went public in April 2021 and joined the S&P 500 on September 22, 2025. Its FY2025 annual report lists 898 employees and four products: Axon Ads Manager, MAX, Adjust and Wurl.
It used to make games too. AppLovin owned ten studios, including Lion Studios, PeopleFun and Machine Zone, and sold them to Tripledot Studios in a deal that closed on June 30, 2025, for $400 million in cash and about 20 percent of Tripledot. Since then AppLovin is an advertising business and nothing else, and a large one: Q2 2026 revenue was $1.92 billion, up 53 percent on the year.
- Revenue, FY2025, up 70%
- $5.48B
- AppLovin Q4 2025 results
- Revenue, Q2 2026, up 53%
- $1.92B
- AppLovin Q2 2026 results
- Adjusted EBITDA margin, Q2 2026
- 84%
- AppLovin Q2 2026 results
- Daily players reached
- 1B+
- AppLovin’s own claim, 2026
What are AppLovin’s products?
AppLovin Ads for advertisers (formerly Axon Ads Manager), MAX for app publishers, the AppLovin Exchange that connects outside buyers, Adjust for measurement and Wurl for connected TV.
| Product | Who uses it | What it does |
|---|---|---|
| AppLovin Ads | Advertisers | Self-serve ad buying at ads.applovin.com, run by the Axon model. Called Axon Ads Manager until June 22, 2026. |
| MAX | App publishers | Mediation: runs one auction for every ad slot in an app across AppLovin and rival networks. |
| AppLovin Exchange (ALX) | Outside buyers | A real-time bidding exchange that lets 100+ DSPs bid on MAX inventory. |
| Adjust | App marketers | Mobile measurement: attribution and analytics. Acquired in 2021. |
| Wurl | Streaming publishers | Connected TV distribution and advertising. |
The two names people mix up most are Axon and MAX. Axon buys ads. MAX sells them. AppLovin MAX vs Axon explains which side you are on.
How does AppLovin work?
A game opens an ad slot. MAX auctions it to AppLovin’s own demand, rival networks and outside DSPs. Axon predicts which advertiser will get the outcome it paid for, bids, and the winning ad plays in the game.
- Supply. Thousands of apps, mostly games, run the MAX software to sell their ad space.
- The auction. When a slot opens, MAX runs one auction across its bidders: AppLovin’s own demand, networks such as Unity, Meta Audience Network and Moloco, and DSPs bidding through ALX.
- Demand. Advertisers set a goal in AppLovin Ads: return on ad spend, cost per purchase, cost per lead or an in-app event. They do not pick audiences.
- The model. Axon predicts, for that one impression, which campaign is most likely to hit its goal, and bids.
- The ad. The winner plays: a full-screen video, a playable demo of a game, or an end card with one tap to the store.
- The feedback. Purchases and installs flow back through the advertiser’s pixel or SDK and train the next prediction.
AppLovin owns the pipe that sells the inventory and the model that buys it, and every impression makes the model better. That is how 898 people ran a business with an 84 percent adjusted EBITDA margin in Q2 2026.
Who uses AppLovin?
Mobile game studios are the core buyers, from Scopely’s Monopoly GO to Playtika’s Bingo Blitz. E-commerce brands such as Gymshark, Wayfair and HelloFresh now advertise there too, and app publishers use MAX to sell their ad space.
Game studios buy AppLovin for installs and in-app spend. The AppLovin ads library lists dozens of them: Scopely (Monopoly GO), Gram Games (Merge Dragons), Playtika (Bingo Blitz), Zynga, Jam City, Plarium and wooga among them.
E-commerce is the growth story. AppLovin names Gymshark, Fashion Nova, Prose, Wayfair, Ashley, HelloFresh, Bombas and Quince on its consumer-brands page. Mattress, supplement, outdoor furniture and medical-device brands show up in the ads themselves. On the Q2 2026 call, AppLovin said consumer advertiser spend finished the quarter 28 percent above its Q4 2025 level.
Where do AppLovin ads appear?
Inside mobile apps, almost always games, usually full-screen between levels. AppLovin names Subway Surfers, Candy Crush, Sudoku, Solitaire and Words With Friends as places its ads run.
AppLovin has no feed, no search page and no social app of its own. Every ad it sells appears inside someone else’s app. AppLovin says its network reaches over a billion daily players who spend more than an hour a day in games, and that its full-screen video ads hold a median 35 seconds of attention.
The formats follow from that setting: full-screen vertical video, rewarded video a player chooses to watch for an in-game reward, interactive playables, end cards, and on the publisher side banners (320x50), MRECs (300x250), native and app-open ads. The AppLovin ads library has real examples of each that play in the browser.
Can any business advertise on AppLovin?
Yes, since June 22, 2026. AppLovin Ads is self-serve, needs no referral code, and starts at $10 a day. It works best for brands with a working pixel and full-screen video creative.
AppLovin opened AppLovin Ads to any business on June 22, 2026. The practical questions are covered one page each: what AppLovin ads cost, what advertisers report after testing it, and how it compares with Moloco. For reporting and automation, see the AppLovin API.
Most brands buying AppLovin still buy Meta and Google too, and those platforms publish every ad a competitor runs. Sprites reads those ad libraries and runs your Google, Meta, LinkedIn, TikTok and Reddit campaigns, so the channels you can see are handled while you test the one you cannot.
Keep going
The rest of the AppLovin guide, and the ads themselves.
Every ads library on Sprites
Search any advertiser by name, or open the library for the platform you are buying on.
Frequently asked questions
What does AppLovin do in simple terms?
AppLovin sells ads inside mobile apps, mostly games. Developers use its software to sell ad space, advertisers use it to buy that space, and its AI model Axon decides which ad each player sees.
Does AppLovin still make games?
No. AppLovin sold its game studios to Tripledot Studios in a deal that closed on June 30, 2025, for $400 million in cash and about 20 percent of Tripledot. It is now purely an advertising business.
How does AppLovin make money?
From advertising. Advertisers pay AppLovin for results such as purchases or installs, and AppLovin pays the app publishers whose ad space shows those ads. Revenue was $5.48 billion in 2025 and $1.92 billion in Q2 2026.
What is the difference between AppLovin, Axon and MAX?
AppLovin is the company. Axon is its AI model, which powers the advertiser platform AppLovin Ads. MAX is the mediation software app publishers use to sell their ad space.
Who owns AppLovin?
AppLovin is a public company listed on Nasdaq under the ticker APP and a member of the S&P 500 since September 22, 2025. Adam Foroughi, a co-founder, is CEO.
Is AppLovin a Chinese company?
No. AppLovin is an American company headquartered in Palo Alto, California.
Why do I see AppLovin ads in my games?
Because the game uses AppLovin to sell its ad space. The developer earns money each time an ad plays, and AppLovin chooses which advertiser’s ad to show you.
Can I see the ads that run on AppLovin?
AppLovin publishes no ad library. The Sprites AppLovin ads library collects real AppLovin creatives, including playables that run in the browser.
AppLovin is one channel. Sprites runs the others.
Meta, Google and LinkedIn publish every ad your competitors run. Sprites reads them, shows you which ones are working, and runs your Google, Meta, LinkedIn, TikTok and Reddit campaigns with your approval on every change.