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Adtech IPO Rebound: Liftoff Files to Go Public
Technology

Adtech IPO Rebound: Liftoff Files to Go Public

Business Insider3h ago
3 min read
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Key Facts

  • ✓ Liftoff filed to go public in the United States, becoming the first major pure-play adtech IPO since MNTN's debut last spring.
  • ✓ The company reported $491 million in revenue for the nine months ending September 30, representing 30% year-over-year growth.
  • ✓ Consumer spending on mobile apps reached an estimated $155.8 billion in 2025, growing 21.6% year over year.
  • ✓ AppLovin's market capitalization has surpassed $200 billion, making it the most valuable pure-play adtech company.
  • ✓ Recent antitrust rulings have forced Apple and Google to allow alternative payment methods, potentially saving developers 30% in commissions.
  • ✓ The mobile adtech space has consolidated into a handful of major players including AppLovin, Unity's mobile ad business, Google's AdMob, and Mobvista.

Quick Summary

The mobile advertising technology sector is experiencing a significant resurgence, with consumer spending on mobile apps reaching an estimated $155.8 billion in 2025. This surge has created ideal conditions for public offerings, as companies seek to capitalize on renewed investor confidence.

This week marks a pivotal moment as Liftoff, a mobile adtech firm backed by Blackstone, filed to go public in the United States. The move signals a potential end to a prolonged IPO drought that has gripped the sector since 2021, with industry experts predicting a wave of new public debuts in the coming year.

Liftoff Breaks the Ice

The filing represents the first major pure-play adtech IPO since connected-TV firm MNTN debuted last spring. Liftoff's business model centers on providing a software development kit that app developers install to sell advertising, alongside a machine learning-powered product for advertisers targeting high-quality mobile users.

Financial performance has been strong, with the company growing revenue by 30% year over year to $491 million in the nine months ending September 30. Liftoff reported adjusted earnings of $263.3 million, representing a 54% margin, though it posted a net loss of $25.6 million during that period.

The mobile adtech landscape has consolidated significantly in recent years, with a handful of major players dominating the market:

"AppLovin is a bellwether for a buoyant space."

— Ciaran O'Kane, General Partner, FirstPartyCapital

The AppLovin Effect 🚀

AppLovin's meteoric rise has set a powerful precedent for the sector. The company's market capitalization has soared past $200 billion, cementing its status as the most valuable pure-play adtech company by a wide margin. This success has been powered by its AI-driven Axon targeting platform and recent expansion beyond gaming into e-commerce advertising.

The company maintains some of the highest profit margins in the entire technology sector, not just within adtech. This performance has created what industry observers call the "AppLovin effect," where other mobile adtech companies and their investors hope some of this success will translate to their own public offerings.

AppLovin is a bellwether for a buoyant space.

This sentiment was expressed by Ciaran O'Kane, general partner at the adtech-focused venture fund FirstPartyCapital. The company's success demonstrates that sophisticated, AI-powered advertising platforms can achieve exceptional profitability in the mobile ecosystem.

Performance Advertising Pays

The transformation of mobile advertising from simple banner ads to sophisticated, data-driven platforms has revolutionized the industry. Mobile adtech companies have evolved from middlemen that simply placed ads on websites and apps into complex platforms powered by AI, data, and machine learning.

Consumer spending on mobile apps grew an estimated 21.6% year over year in 2025, according to app intelligence company Appfigures. This growth has been driven by performance advertising, which focuses on measurable outcomes like app installs and online sales.

App advertisers are typically more focused on math than art.

Alex Merutka, CEO of the creative technology platform Craftsman+, explains that these advertisers make precise adjustments to variables including targeting, ad creative, and timing. They might tweak whether an ad appears in the first 30 seconds of a game versus the first 45 seconds to optimize performance.

Advertisers are willing to pay premium rates to target potential "whales" - users most likely to spend significantly once they download an app. The short feedback loop in advertising provides billions of data impressions, allowing targeting systems to continuously improve and deliver better returns on ad spend.

Headwinds Fade, Tailwinds Rise

Apple's 2021 privacy update initially created significant challenges for the mobile ad industry. The policy forced apps to request user permission for tracking, and with most users opting out, publishers and advertisers lost access to Apple's anonymous device identifier for precise targeting and measurement.

However, the industry has adapted over the past few years through investments in first-party data, AI tools, and contextual advertising. Companies have reduced their reliance on Apple's identifier while maintaining effective targeting capabilities.

Recent antitrust rulings have created another favorable environment for 2026. Both Apple and Google have been forced to allow developers to use external payment links and alternative payment methods, providing a path to avoid the standard 30% commission on downloads and in-app payments.

Mobile marketing analyst and investor Eric Seufert notes that this creates an ideal environment for increased mobile ad spending. When businesses save money on commissions, they typically reinvest those savings into user acquisition rather than banking the profits, creating a positive cycle for the advertising ecosystem.

Looking Ahead

The mobile adtech sector appears poised for a significant public offering cycle in 2026, driven by strong consumer spending, proven profitability models, and improved regulatory conditions. Liftoff's successful filing could serve as the catalyst for a broader reopening of the IPO market for adtech companies.

Industry experts identify InMobi and Moloco as the next likely candidates for public listings. InMobi, backed by SoftBank, has been rumored as an IPO candidate for some time, with reports suggesting potential plans for an Indian public listing. Moloco's CEO has stated that going public is among the company's milestones, though no specific timeline has been provided.

The combination of AI-powered targeting capabilities, strong financial performance, and a favorable regulatory environment creates compelling conditions for growth. As the mobile advertising ecosystem continues to mature, the next wave of public offerings will likely showcase companies that have successfully navigated the post-privacy landscape while delivering measurable value to advertisers.

"App advertisers are typically more focused on math than art."

— Alex Merutka, CEO, Craftsman+

"Going public is one of the milestones that we aim to reach."

— Ahn Ikjin, CEO, Moloco

"The way these businesses operate, if I save money on commissions, I don't bank it. It's recycled into user acquisition."

— Eric Seufert, Mobile Marketing Analyst and Investor

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