The news: AppLovin has had an eventful October.

Last week, CEO Adam Foroughi unveiled Axon, a rebrand and expansion of the company’s AI-driven ad business—just as news broke that the SEC is investigating its data practices, per CNBC. The timing underscores both the scale of AppLovin’s ambition and the risks of operating in the ad tech space.

The new Axon Ads Manager, now invite-only, lets advertisers manage campaigns from a self-service dashboard. The system integrates third-party attribution and AI-driven audience targeting—positioning Axon as an “ROI-first” alternative to Meta’s and Google’s ad ecosystems.

Why it matters: Axon marks AppLovin’s evolution from a mobile gaming company into a full-fledged performance marketing platform, using AI to bid on impressions in real time and optimize ad spend based on client ROI goals.

• AppLovin’s Axon business has already reached a $1 billion ecommerce ad run rate, per Modern Retail, with clients like Wayfair, Dr. Squatch, and Ashley Furniture scaling six-figure daily budgets. Early adopters cite strong click-through and conversion rates, and one brand increased spend by more than 500% after testing the platform.
• The company’s revenues grew 77% YoY to $1.26 billion in Q2 2025 and EBITDA margins hit 81%, making it one of ad tech’s standout performers.

The Axon Ads Manager’s rollout comes just ahead of the holiday ad surge, with integrations across Shopify and e-commerce platforms aimed at capturing Q4 retail budgets.

What this means for marketers: Axon’s launch gives advertisers a rare alternative to the Meta Google duopoly—pairing AI-driven automation with transparent attribution and referral-based onboarding.

• For DTC and retail brands, it promises lower acquisition costs and more predictable ROI.
• Axon’s real-time, AI-optimized bidding directly addresses marketers’ 2025 priorities: sharper targeting (45%), AI integration (37%), and measurable ROI (34%), per Growthloop/Ascend2.

Still, AppLovin’s SEC inquiry is a reminder that speed and efficiency must be balanced with privacy and compliance—an equilibrium that will define the next phase of performance marketing.