AppLovin

Before our new chairman, the good reviews were accurate. There was great culture, interesting problems to solve, smart people to work with, little politics, fun yearly excursions, good benefits plan, WFH, and rewards for hard work. Nowadays, just the benefits plan.

With the new chairman, working here is a nightmare. Do not believe the good reviews. The company has been transformed via a series of sun tzu chess plays. Diversity is no longer a thing here, so make sure you are on the right side of the inclusionary boundary. Despite record profits, the company continuously fires people in the name of efficiency. There is zero work life balance with a constant carrot and stick. You will be messaged on nights, weekends, and holidays to do work that you won't be appreciated for. It's basically Amazon but without the brand name. It is extremely toxic and there is no psychological safety.

Last year, the chairman promised merit-based rewards and midterm reviews for all of engineering. Instead, he only gave midterm reviews to his favorites and no one else. Expectations will be poorly set and under communicated on purpose. There is no upwards feedback, so don't expect this place to change either. The culture has devolved into an experience you would find overseas. No documentation, backstabbing, and information silos are the new norm. Nepotism is the only way to move up in this company, so don't bother doing good work. There is no formal performance cycle, and no paperwork to go with it.

Leadership has checked out. They are all shadow puppets and do nothing but virtue signaling during our all-hands meetings. The almighty dollar is all that drives them, and they will sign off on anything that increases shareholder value by another few cents. I have watched amazingly talented engineers get pushed out for no reason other than more greedy profits. In the NYT's article for Top 10 U.S. chief executives by compensation granted in 2023, our CEO made the chart.

Stop pretending you don't know what is happening.