Summary
AppLovin CEO Adam Foroughi joins the All-In Podcast to explain how his company built a mobile advertising empire worth tens of billions of dollars using deep learning and recommendation systems long before the current generative AI boom. Foroughi describes AppLovin’s platform, which now drives an estimated $20 billion of annual ad spend inside mobile games, and argues that advertising was effectively “ML 1.0” — an early, highly profitable proving ground for the same deep learning techniques that now power large language models.
The conversation covers how AppLovin survived a brutal 92% stock drawdown after its 2021 IPO, going from a $28 billion market cap down to roughly $3.8 billion before recovering through an aggressive stock buyback program funded by strong EBITDA growth. Foroughi also details the company’s engineering footprint across Palo Alto, Beijing, and Singapore, and how it operated without significant venture funding in its early years.
Beyond the AppLovin story, the discussion offers a broader perspective on how advertising and recommendation algorithms relate to the research driving today’s large language models, including how talent and techniques flow between the two fields. Viewers interested in the intersection of AI, ad-tech, and public markets will find a candid look at building a major AI-adjacent business largely outside the media spotlight.
📺 Source: All-In Podcast · Published September 20, 2026
🏷️ Format: Interview
