Maya Robertson
Liftoff Mobile has postponed its planned U.S. initial public offering, citing unstable market conditions as investors pull back from software and ad tech stocks amid growing concerns over generative AI disruption.
The Blackstone-backed mobile marketing company said it decided to delay its listing after a sharp sell-off across technology shares spilled into the IPO market, complicating conditions for first-time issuers. In a statement shared with Reuters, Liftoff said it would take “additional time before listing” and reiterated its intention to pursue a public debut once market dynamics better align with its long-term objectives.
The decision follows heightened volatility in U.S. equity markets, where investor sentiment toward software companies has weakened in recent weeks. Fears that advances in generative AI could disrupt existing business models have triggered a broad reassessment of valuations across the sector. Since late January, more than $800 billion has been wiped from the S&P 500 software and services index, according to Reuters calculations.
Liftoff’s IPO pause comes shortly after the company began marketing the offering to investors. It had planned to sell roughly 25.4 million shares at a price range of $26 to $30 per share, targeting proceeds of up to $762 million and an implied valuation of approximately $5.17 billion. Goldman Sachs, Jefferies, and Morgan Stanley were leading the offering.
Market uncertainty has been amplified by a wave of new generative AI products from companies such as Google and Anthropic, prompting questions about whether AI will continue to support software growth or instead erode competitive moats. While U.S. stocks staged a brief rebound following an AI-driven sell-off last week, investor caution has persisted, particularly around the path to profitability for AI-heavy businesses.
Liftoff operates in the mobile performance marketing space, providing app developers with tools to acquire users and drive growth. The company reported around 40% growth in its core advertising revenue and said its platform reaches approximately 1.4 billion daily active users globally. Liftoff was formed in 2021 through the merger of Liftoff and Vungle, two ad tech firms brought together under Blackstone’s ownership, and later secured a minority investment from General Atlantic at a valuation of $4.3 billion.
For Blackstone, the delay represents a pause in what the firm has previously described as one of its largest IPO pipelines, at a time when private equity sponsors are closely watching public market windows reopen after a prolonged slowdown. Other alternative asset managers, including KKR, Blue Owl, and Ares Management, have recently highlighted continued exposure to software assets in their portfolios, even as market volatility intensifies.
Liftoff has not announced a revised timeline for its listing. Its decision adds to growing uncertainty around the 2026 IPO calendar, as boards and investors reassess whether current market conditions can support new tech listings amid shifting expectations around AI, growth, and valuation discipline.
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