This exec went from pitching VC funds to raking in billions — AppLovin CEO now worth $11 billion. Here’s how

When Adam Foroughi knocked on venture capitalist (VC) fund’s doors for his company AppLovin in 2012, he was turned away by all. Now, in 2024, over 12 years later, he is among the world’s top 260 richest people, as per a Bloomberg report.

It added that Foroughi ranked at #251 on the Bloomberg Billionaires Index (BBI) of the world’s 500 richest people with a $10.9 billion fortune, has earned billions from his company.

AppLovin Shares Soar

Shares of the Silicon Valley-based marketing services company rocketed 4 per cent on November 7, and have seen a cumulative 7x increase so far in 2024, as per the report. As of close on Friday, November 8, AppLovin shares traded at $290.01, taking the company valuation to $102. billion. And Foroughi, who owns 10 per cent of the company, saw his net worth swell as a result.

Foroughi during the earnings call said AppLovin was on target to achieve up to 30 per cent annual growth, driven partly by Axon 2.0. Further, in its Q2 results, it reported profit and revenue exceeding analysts’ estimates and emphasized its growing focus on e-commerce.

Q3 revenue climbed 39 per cent to $1.2 billion, topping the $1.13 billion average estimate, according to LSEG. And AppLovin sees Q4 revenue of $1.24-1.26 billion, representing growth of about 31 per cent, against analysts expectation of $1.18 billion.

According to CNBC report, AppLovin has gained 519 per cent this year — outpacing even AI tech darling Nvidia and Palantir.

Industry Watchers Positive About Growth

Wedbush Securities’ Michael Pachter in an investor note said AppLovin’s performance “continues to impress” and reiterated its outperform rating, stating, “We see little downside to the stock at current levels”, as per the BB report.

The company’s surge is largely attributed to its “successful” artificial intelligence (AI) adoption. Among its digital marketing services for mobile app developers, AppLovin lists its AI-powered Axon 2.0 advertising engine, which the report said “shattered estimates” in the Q3 earnings report.

Eva Ados, Chief Investment Strategist at EntrepreneurShares told Fox News that he is “still lovin’ Applovin”.

AppLovin’s spokesperson did not respond to queries, Bloomberg said.

Adam Foroughi — From Trader to Billionaire Company Owner

Born in Tehran, Iran in 1979, Foroughi’s family moved to the US when he was a child. He graduated from Berkeley in 2001 and first worked as a derivates trader. From there he launched two ad-tech startups before co-founding AppLovin in 2012, as per the report.

After being turned away by VCs for funding, Foroughi bootstrapped the business with help from angel investments and in 2018 took on a $280 million market loan to grow the company. “It just made sense for us to raise capital in this manner versus sell off shares and dilute,” he said then.

He retained his stake in the company. Today AppLovin competes with Meta and Alphabet in the digital marketing space with 1.4 billion daily active users. Its focus is on marketing strategies for smartphone users, mobile games, and interactive ads, it added

AppLovin’s IPO debuted on the Nasdaq exchange in a 2021 and notably Foroughi’s 10 per cent stake in it comprises 99 per cent of his net worth, as per BBI data.

(With inputs from Bloomberg)