AppLovin Stock Tumbles After Short-Seller Report Alleging ‘Scammy' Practices
AppLovin shares plunged Thursday after short seller Muddy Waters alleged the adtech company engaged in 'scammy" practices.
The report comes just weeks after other short sellers including Fuzzy Panda and Culper Research accused the company of fraudulent and deceptive practices.
Thursday's losses brought shares into negative territory for the year. Still, they've nearly quadrupled in value over the last 12 months on anticipation of AI-driven growth.AppLovin (APP) shares plummeted Thursday after short seller Carson Block's Muddy Waters said it was taking a short position, alleging the adtech company engaged in 'scammy' practices.
Shares lost about one-fifth of their value Thursday to close at $261.70, bringing them into negative territory for the year. Still, the stock has nearly quadrupled in value over the last 12 months on expectations it could benefit from growing demand for AI-powered advertising tools as the company reported strong revenue gains.
Muddy Waters accused AppLovin of misappropriating data and violating key partner platforms' terms of service, among other things, and suggested backlash to its practices could hold back AppLovin's growth plans and lead its services to be blocked by partners and boycotted by clients.
AppLovin did not immediately respond to a request for comment on the report.
The report from Muddy Waters comes just weeks after other short sellers including Fuzzy Panda and Culper Research issued their own reports against AppLovin, accusing the company of engaging in fraudulent and deceptive practices.
Read the original article on Investopedia
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Entrepreneur
20 minutes ago
- Entrepreneur
Meta Plans to Release New Oakley, Prada AI Smart Glasses
The Oakley Meta AI glasses are expected to cost more than the Ray-Ban Metas. Following the unexpected success of the Ray-Ban Meta smart glasses, which have sold two million pairs since launch in late 2023, Meta is releasing new versions of its AI smart glasses under the Oakley and Prada brands. According to a CNBC report released Tuesday, Meta is expanding its partnership with EssilorLuxottica, the parent company that owns Ray-Ban and Oakley and has a licensing agreement with Prada. The new Oakley Meta smart glasses will target athletes and active customers, while the Prada partnership will give Meta a high-end deal with a notable fashion house. Related: Apple Is Reportedly Developing AI Smart Glasses to Compete with Meta and Google The Oakley glasses will reportedly start at $360, a higher price point than the $299 Ray-Ban Metas, but have a more weather-resistant style, a source told CNBC. The glasses will be able to take photos and videos, make calls and send text messages through voice commands, livestream content, and play music, just like the Ray-Ban Metas. They will also have AI capabilities, so users can ask questions through a "Hey Meta" voice command. Bloomberg also reported in January that the Oakley glasses were set to be released later this year, and the camera will be in the center of the frame instead of on the side, like the Ray-Ban Metas, so that "cyclists and other athletes" could record footage. Meta previewed the Oakley partnership on social media on Monday by creating a new Instagram account for "Oakley | Meta" with one post that reads: "The next evolution is coming on June 20." Prada, meanwhile, renewed its eyewear licensing agreement with Luxottica for the next decade in December. Former Meta employees told CNBC that Prada eyewear designs were a good fit for Meta because the glasses feature thick temples that can house more technology. Meta has yet to announce the Prada deal or a timeline for when the smart glasses will hit the market. Related: Google Is Making AI 'Intelligent Eyewear' With Warby Parker After Eyeing Meta's Ray-Ban Success EssilorLuxottica and Meta first joined forces in 2019 to work on the Ray-Ban Meta smart glasses. Meta released a first-generation pair in 2021 and a second-generation pair in 2023. The second-generation glasses took off; EssilorLuxottica CEO Francesco Milleri said during an earnings call in February that the AI smart glasses were "a great success" and that the company plans to produce 10 million of them by the end of next year. Meta, meanwhile, is also making a broader push into artificial intelligence. The company announced last week that it would invest $14.3 billion in AI data labeling startup, Scale AI, in exchange for a 49% stake. Some Scale AI employees, including CEO Alexandr Wang, will join Meta as part of the move.
TechCrunch
23 minutes ago
- TechCrunch
OpenAI's $200M DoD contract could squeeze frenemy Microsoft
OpenAI said Monday the U.S. Department of Defense granted it a contract for up to $200 million to help the agency identify and build prototype systems that use its frontier models for administrative tasks and more. OpenAI provides a few examples of possible tasking, such as helping service members get healthcare, streamlining data on various programs, and 'supporting proactive cyber defense.' The company also said that 'All use cases must be consistent with OpenAI's usage policies and guidelines.' The DoD's announcement used slightly more straightforward wording. It says, 'Under this award, the performer will develop prototype frontier AI capabilities to address critical national security challenges in both warfighting and enterprise domains.' Whether that reference to war-fighting applies to the weapons themselves or just other areas associated with wars, like paperwork, remains to be seen. OpenAI's guidelines do forbid individual users to use ChatGPT or its APIs to develop or use weapons. However, OpenAI deleted the explicit prohibitions of 'military and warfare' in its terms of service back in January, 2024. Given how heavily some powerful people in Silicon Valley have warned of the dangers of China's advanced LLM models, it's not surprising the DoD wants to use OpenAI for whatever purposes it wants. For instance, Marc Andreessen, co-founder of VC firm Andreessen Horowitz, an OpenAI investor, recently appeared on Jack Altman's 'Uncapped' podcast (brother of Sam Altman). Andreessen described the race between China's AI and the western world's models as a 'cold war.' Still, perhaps an equally interesting part of this announcement is what it says about OpenAI's increasingly strained relationship with its major investor Microsoft. Microsoft has thousands of contracts with the federal government worth hundreds of millions of dollars. It has, for decades, been implementing the strict security protocols necessary for the government – especially the DoD – to use its cloud. Techcrunch event Save $200+ on your TechCrunch All Stage pass Build smarter. Scale faster. Connect deeper. Join visionaries from Precursor Ventures, NEA, Index Ventures, Underscore VC, and beyond for a day packed with strategies, workshops, and meaningful connections. Save $200+ on your TechCrunch All Stage pass Build smarter. Scale faster. Connect deeper. Join visionaries from Precursor Ventures, NEA, Index Ventures, Underscore VC, and beyond for a day packed with strategies, workshops, and meaningful connections. Boston, MA | REGISTER NOW OpenAI announced this deal as part of its broader new 'OpenAI for Government' program, which consolidates a number of other programs it uses to sell wares directly to government agencies, including the U.S. National Labs, the Air Force Research Laboratory, NASA, NIH, and the Treasury, according to the company. But it was only in April that Microsoft announced the DoD had approved its Azure OpenAI Service for all classified levels. Now the DoD is also going straight to the source. From Microsoft's perspective: ouch. Neither OpenAI nor Microsoft immediately responded to a request for comment.
CNET
33 minutes ago
- CNET
More Than 40% of Employees Are Using AI at Work, a New Poll Says
More Than 40% of Employees Are Using AI at Work, a New Poll Says A Gallup poll also found that 15% of employees believe they are likely to be replaced by AI, automation or robots.
