Liftoff

What Liftoff does

Liftoff Mobile, Inc. is a Redwood City-based mobile growth acceleration platform that combines user acquisition, ad monetization, programmatic exchange, creative optimization, and app-market intelligence into a single integrated suite serving mobile app marketers, agencies, DSPs, and publishers. The company was founded in 2012, acquired majority-controlled by Blackstone in 2021, and merged with Vungle to form the current AI-powered mobile adtech entity; General Atlantic acquired a minority stake at a $4.3 billion valuation in May 2025, and Liftoff completed its Nasdaq IPO under ticker LFTO in June 2026, raising $502.6 million at a $4.18 billion valuation.

At the core of Liftoff is Cortex, a proprietary neural-network prediction engine that processes over 2 billion predictions per second across approximately 1.4 billion daily active users and powers five products: Accelerate (ML-driven user acquisition), Monetize (impression-level ad yield optimization), Vungle Exchange (programmatic marketplace), Creative (ad-creative optimization), and Intelligence (GameRefinery and AppRefinery market-intelligence tools). Cortex's specialized capabilities — Multicast Modeling for user-level ROAS, Sequential Modeling for behavioral insight, Unattributed Samples for measurement, and agentic workflows for autonomous campaign optimization — underpin the company's claim of materially higher data processing capacity than typical mobile adtech platforms.

Liftoff generates revenue primarily through performance-based mobile advertising (advertising fees tied to acquired users and campaign outcomes), marketplace commissions on publisher monetization via Vungle Exchange, and a growing intelligence/data subscription layer. The company operates a hybrid go-to-market combining enterprise field sales (with named customers including King, Playrix, Badoo, Just Eat, and PrizePicks across gaming, social, food delivery, and fantasy sports) and self-serve onboarding for mid-market advertisers. In 2025, Liftoff generated $685.7 million in revenue (up 32% year-over-year), with core advertising platform revenue up 41% and demand-side customer count up 21%, while net loss narrowed to $23.1 million from $48.2 million the prior year.

Name

Liftoff

Legal name

Liftoff Mobile, Inc.

Website

https://liftoff.io

Company type

Public

Founded year

2012

Operating status

Ipo

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Liftoff is a mobile growth acceleration platform combining AI-powered user acquisition, ad monetization, programmatic exchange, and app-market intelligence (via Cortex, its proprietary neural-network engine). It serves 1,000+ global advertisers and publishers, reaching 1.4 billion daily active users across gaming, social, finance, and consumer app verticals.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Mobile Advertising Technology

NAICS

Computing Infrastructure Providers, Data Processing, Web Hosting, and Related Services (51821)

SIC

Services-Prepackaged Software (7372)

akta.pro primary industry

Conversion Rate Optimization (CRO) & Landing Page Optimization (BPAFACAH)

akta.pro secondary industry

End-to-End Enterprise AI Platforms (MLOps & Model Lifecycle Management) (HDAEANAA)

Keywords

• Mobile adtech platform
• Mobile user acquisition
• Ad monetization solutions
• Programmatic advertising exchange
• Mobile app marketing

Headquarters

HQ city

Redwood City

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Software

Cost components

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

Revenue model

1. Mobile Advertising Platform: Liftoff generates revenue primarily through its AI-powered mobile advertising platform, providing user acquisition and ad monetization services to app developers and marketers. Revenue grew 30-40% year-over-year, with core advertising platform revenue growing 41% in 2025 and demand-side customer count growing 21% year-over-year.
2. Performance Marketing Services: Performance-based mobile marketing services where advertisers pay for acquired users or specific campaign outcomes, leveraging Cortex AI for optimization.
3. Publisher Monetization: Revenue from publishers by matching premium global advertising demand with publisher inventory, maximizing earnings for every impression through the Monetize and Vungle Exchange products.

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels5 records

Marketing channels5 records

Core offering

Liftoff operates a unified AI-powered mobile growth acceleration platform that combines user acquisition (Accelerate), ad monetization (Monetize), a programmatic exchange (Vungle Exchange), creative optimization, and app intelligence tools (GameRefinery, AppRefinery). All offerings are powered by Cortex, its proprietary neural network prediction engine that processes over two billion predictions per second across approximately 1.4 billion daily active users.

Product overview

Liftoff is a unified mobile growth acceleration platform comprising five core products powered by Cortex, its proprietary AI engine. The platform integrates Accelerate (ML-powered user acquisition), Monetize (ad monetization), Vungle Exchange (programmatic exchange), Creative (ad optimization), and Intelligence (GameRefinery and AppRefinery app insights). Cortex serves as the underlying AI infrastructure enabling autonomous campaign optimization, predictive analytics, and behavioral modeling across all products, serving over 1.4 billion daily active users worldwide.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Cortex: Proprietary neural network prediction engine for mobile advertising powered by AI
• Accelerate
• Monetize
• Vungle Exchange
• Creative
• Intelligence
• GameRefinery
• AppRefinery

Products and services

• Cortex Liftoff's proprietary neural network prediction engine and AI-enabled growth platform that powers all products, processing over two billion predictions per second across approximately 1.4 billion daily active users for autonomous campaign optimization.
• Accelerate ML-powered mobile advertising solution for acquiring quality users at scale, using machine learning, innovative creative strategies, and unique first-party data to attract and engage target audiences.
• Monetize Ad monetization platform that maximizes earnings for every impression by matching premium global demand with superior ad experiences across mobile apps.
• Vungle Exchange Programmatic exchange platform enabling engagement with high-quality users in their favorite mobile apps through performance-driven ad experiences and programmatic reach.
• Creative Creative solution that optimizes campaign performance with better ad creatives, helping brands craft high-impact advertisements for mobile audiences.
• Intelligence Suite of app insights tools including GameRefinery and AppRefinery that help boost revenue, drive growth, and stay ahead of competition through market intelligence.
• GameRefinery Mobile games market intelligence platform providing insights into gaming trends, monetization strategies, and user engagement patterns for game developers.
• AppRefinery Consumer app insights platform providing deep intelligence into leading consumer applications' performance and user engagement metrics.

Quantifiable outcome

• 41% growth in Core Advertising platform revenue in 2025
• +4 more outcomes

Named customers5 records

Segments5 records

Ideal customer profiles5 records

Technology focussed Yes

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration2 records

AI capability7 records

Feature10 records

Partnerships

Three partnerships are on record, tiered minor and core.

• Liftoff BrandsminorChannel Partner/ Reseller/ Distributor · 17 March 2026Liftoff Brands serves as exclusive brokerage partner for Rocket Vodka's launch in Los Angeles, San Diego, and Southern California, focusing on on-premise accounts before expanding to retail distribution.
• RobloxcoreGTM or Marketing Partner · 6 January 2026Liftoff serves as one of the initial programmatic advertising partners for Roblox's new Homepage Feature ad format announced at CES 2026, enabling brands to reach Roblox's 151+ million daily active users. The partnership expands Liftoff's premium inventory access to immersive advertising formats.
• KochavacoreTechnology or Integration · 15 December 2025Liftoff is one of six initial certified partners in Kochava's Partner Certification Program, recognized for meeting requirements around integration quality, traffic health, and technical collaboration. Certified partners receive priority support and co-marketing programs.

Scale indicators9 records

Recent moves8 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Direct peers

• AppLovin: AppLovin operates a comparable mobile adtech and monetization platform (AppDiscovery, AXON) serving app developers with AI-driven user acquisition and monetization. It is the most direct competitor to Liftoff across Accelerate, Monetize, and Vungle Exchange equivalents.
• Unity Technologies: Unity's LevelPlay mediation and Unity Ads offering directly overlaps Liftoff's Monetize and Vungle Exchange, particularly for mobile game publishers. Both target the same app developer and monetization workflows.
• ironSource (Unity): ironSource provides mobile ad mediation and user acquisition tools comparable to Liftoff's Monetize and Accelerate products. Acquired by Unity, it remains a directly competing adtech stack within mobile gaming and broader app monetization.
• Digital Turbine: Digital Turbine delivers mobile user acquisition and ad monetization (including the AdColony and Fyber assets) to app developers and OEMs, directly competing with Liftoff's Accelerate and Monetize products across the mobile adtech stack.
• InMobi: InMobi is a mobile-first ad network and exchange serving both advertisers and publishers with programmatic buying and ad monetization, directly overlapping Liftoff's Accelerate user acquisition and Vungle Exchange supply-side capabilities.
• Chartboost (Zynga/Take-Two): Chartboost runs a programmatic mobile ad exchange and mediation stack focused on gaming, comparable to Liftoff's Vungle Exchange and gaming monetization offerings. It is now part of Take-Two Interactive via the Zynga acquisition.

Emerging players

• Moloco: Moloco operates a programmatic DSP and ML-based ad monetization platform for mobile apps and CTV, overlapping with Liftoff's programmatic exchange and user acquisition offerings. It is an emerging AI-native competitor in the same performance advertising category.
• Smaato (Verve Group): Smaato, now part of Verve Group, operates a mobile programmatic exchange and omnichannel ad platform comparable to Vungle Exchange. It targets similar app publishers and DSPs in mobile in-app advertising.

Others

• Adjust (AppLovin): Adjust provides mobile attribution and analytics that are complementary to Liftoff's Cortex optimization platform. Now owned by AppLovin, it competes indirectly through the bundled AppLovin stack targeting the same advertisers Liftoff serves.

Broad incumbents

• The Trade Desk: The Trade Desk is a leading independent omnichannel DSP with growing mobile and connected-TV inventory coverage. While broader than Liftoff, it competes for the same performance advertiser budgets in programmatic mobile buying.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat6 records

Key highlights7 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/liftoffmobile
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/liftoffmobile

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles6 records

Subsidiaries1 record

Funding overview

Funding rounds4 records

Investors7 records

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

M&A

Investments

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

Frequently asked questions about Liftoff