You either die a hero or live long enough to become the villain. It may not be fair, but hey, that’s adtech.
Case in point: Today, Rain’s David Nyurenberg, Director of Video Product Development & Innovation, shared a pretty fiery critique of AppLovin on LinkedIn. “Applovin or Appscamming,” his post begins, setting the spicy tone for what’s to come.
Nyurenberg raises “several critical issues with Applovin deserving scrutiny,” including its heavy reliance on Meta ad spend, its control of both supply and demand (conflicts!), the lack of media verification (e.g., inventory quality and ad placement), and questionable inventory—highlighting that mobile gaming often overindexes on kid users.
As DTC brands continue to pour money into AppLovin’s platform, Nyurenberg urges some caution: “We risk falling for yet another attribution gaming scheme masquerading as innovation.”
Why This Matters:
Companies like AppLovin and Zeta are living the “live long enough” mantra to varying degrees right now. Both have posted stellar earnings, which has only invited scrutiny. Part of this, in our view, stems from a lack of understanding about what these companies actually do. When they post strong numbers, the assumption becomes: “How did they achieve this? It must be nefarious!”
In AppLovin’s case, there is some valid concern about the lack of transparency around its business. Verification in mobile remains a black box. Companies like DoubleVerify and IAS provide some critical coverage, but the media-buying platforms themselves need to step up. Mobile is also challenging to audit, with limited oversight from third-party researchers like Adalytics. As a result, ad spend continues to flow unchecked.
And let’s be honest: these are DTC companies. Do they care more about media quality or performance? It’s always the latter. But Nyurenberg raises a conflict—albeit speculative—that could push the status quo.
Experts React:
See this cool exchange from the comments section of Nyurenberg’s post:
Our Take:
If you’re a little-known, publicly traded adtech company that suddenly posts a great earnings report… brace yourself for the spotlight! Adtech loves a hero but is always ready to question the methods behind the success. Heavy is the crown.
Speaking of, expect TTD to not allow AppLovin to steal that crown without a fight. They want to be seen as the adtech king. They will speak out about AppLovin and media quality, for example, at some point. This is pure speculation but we think it could happen (either with or without their fingerprints).
