Today we’re breaking down AppLovin. It’s a business you may not recognize but have likely interacted with. Founded in 2012, AppLovin provides a platform for developers to market and monetize their mobile apps. The business also owns some of the most popular mobile games in the world, which they use to feed richer data into their software platform. To help breakdown the business, I’m joined by its CEO and co-founder, Adam Foroughi. Please enjoy this breakdown of AppLovin.   For the full show notes, transcript, and links to the best content to learn more, check out the episode page here.   -----   Business Breakdowns is a property of Colossus, LLC. For more episodes of Business Breakdowns, visit joincolossus.com/episodes.   Stay up to date on all our podcasts by signing up to Colossus Weekly, our quick dive every Sunday highlighting the top business and investing concepts from our podcasts and the best of what we read that week. Sign up here.   Follow us on Twitter: @JoinColossus | @patrick_oshag | @jspujji | @zbfuss   Show Notes [00:02:41] - [First question] - The first risk taken when creating AppLovin and how it all began [00:05:05] - Why was there pushback against games and adtech back in 2012 [00:07:12] - What it was like in the early days to get the app in front of a customer  [00:08:54] - Building a platform and software product versus becoming an advertising agency [00:10:47] - The major components of AppLovin and how it works  [00:15:21] - The space or areas where most people interact with them and see their work  [00:16:26] - What he considers to be the next key chapters after AppLovin’s early days  [00:18:25] - How they determine strategy between the app developer side of the business and app ownership [00:25:50] - How AppLovin interacts with Apple, Android, and the relationship between products [00:27:11] - What he’s learned about the importance of scale in advertising  [00:28:58] - The major breakout points in the business that led to where he is today  [00:30:22] - Their revenue model and it how it breaks between software and apps [00:33:55] - The margins of gaming, its business proposition, and the future value of this side of the franchise [00:38:53] - His perspective on what defines great digital marketing today  [00:40:31] - Walking through the shifts in privacy, targeting, and data as technology changes [00:43:13] - His thoughts on emerging platforms as competitive threats and/or opportunities  [00:44:58] - How they’ve kept the business nimble and very product-focused on a corporate level [00:46:53] - Their concept of meetings and how they’ve learned to run them effectively [00:50:24] - The missing pieces in his strategic mission that he still wants to do in five years time [00:51:42] - What he’s learned from Facebook, Google, and game studios he’s worked with [00:54:32] - How he thinks about defensibility and power in the business as they evolve and grow [00:57:19] - His philosophy on the maturity of the business and if they’d pay dividends in the future [00:59:32] - How he has most improved in his career during his time with AppLovin  [01:02:03] - Questions that the world’s largest bear would ask him today [01:03:18] - The most interesting trends happening around him in the digital space [01:06:04] - His thoughts on the eventual impact of Facebook and Google becoming competitors rather than the collaborators they are today 

This is Jesse Pujji and today we’re breaking down Block – formerly known as Square. This software and financial services business was founded by Jack Dorsey and Jim McKelvey in 2009. It has since expanded from its first product – a payments card reader – into a $75 billion market cap with six businesses that build on the firm’s mission of economic access and empowerment. Those are: Square, Cash App, Afterpay, Tidal, Spiral, and TBD.   To break down Block, I’m joined by payments expert and investor at TDM Growth Partners, Hamish Corlett. We cover the common threads that have enabled Block to organically build two major ecosystems in Square and Cash App, how the recent Afterpay acquisition can strengthen the connective tissue between those businesses, and the competitive frontiers Block faces. Please enjoy this business breakdown of Block.   For the full show notes, transcript, and links to the best content to learn more, check out the episode page here.   -----   Business Breakdowns is a property of Colossus, LLC. For more episodes of Business Breakdowns, visit joincolossus.com/episodes.   Stay up to date on all our podcasts by signing up to Colossus Weekly, our quick dive every Sunday highlighting the top business and investing concepts from our podcasts and the best of what we read that week. Sign up here.   Follow us on Twitter: @JoinColossus | @patrick_oshag | @jspujji | @zbfuss   Show Notes [00:02:52] - [First question] - What is Block and what it does as a business [00:04:58] - How is Block organized, their scale, and how many merchants they serve [00:08:03] - Their founding story and the insight that lead to creating Block [00:10:49] - Major milestones in the last decade after releasing their card reader [00:13:47] - The story behind their Cash App and what it is [00:18:59] - What Afterpay is and how it creates connections for merchants [00:21:23] - Overview of the payment ecosystem and where Block fits into it [00:25:03] - The P&L of Square, its blended gross margin, and customer acquisition strategy [00:30:42] - How Cash App makes money and its P&L [00:35:54] - The balance sheet of Block and how they’ve stood out in a competitive space [00:38:31] - The ways their product organization allows them to move at a rapid pace [00:40:30] - How they avoid fraud that’s seemingly everywhere in financial service businesses [00:42:01] - His thoughts on the competitive environment and how they’re succeeding [00:47:56] - Highlights of M&A and how they reconcile them with their overall strategy [00:54:44] - Their view on Bitcoin and crypto and how it plays into Block’s business [00:59:09] - Things that could happen in a macro environment to aid their future growth [01:01:30] - What could go wrong in the future and the macro environment’s impact [01:03:49] - Lessons for builders and investors when studying Block’s story [01:06:20] - Places to go to learn more about Block