Vasily Shikin
AppLovinAbout Vasily Shikin
AppLovin’s Chief Technology Officer since January 2020 (previously VP of Engineering since January 2012). Age 39; holds a Masters in Mathematics from Saint‑Petersburg State University . 2024 company performance: revenue $4.7B (+43% YoY), net income $1.6B (34% margin), adjusted EBITDA $2.7B (58% margin), and $2.1B operating cash flow—driven by AXON‑powered adtech and expansion beyond gaming; management also announced intent to divest the Apps business in 2025 . Shareholder outcomes linked tightly to stock price: the 2023 PSU program fully earned in <18 months on sustained stock price appreciation; 2024 saw a 713% stock price increase and CAP/TSR alignment per Pay‑vs‑Performance disclosures .
Past Roles
| Organization | Role | Years | Strategic Impact |
|---|---|---|---|
| AppLovin | VP of Engineering | Jan 2012 – Jan 2020 | Early engineering leadership for the adtech stack during scale-up phase . |
| DeviceAnywhere (acquired by Keynote Systems) | Senior Software Engineer | May 2008 – Jan 2012 | Built cloud platform for testing/monitoring mobile websites and apps . |
External Roles
No outside public-company directorships or external roles disclosed for Mr. Shikin .
Fixed Compensation
| Year | Base Salary ($) | Target Bonus % | Actual Cash Bonus ($) |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2022 | 400,000 | N/A – no annual cash bonus program | — (no annual cash bonus) |
| 2023 | 400,000 | N/A – no annual cash bonus program | — |
| 2024 | 400,000 | N/A – no annual cash bonus program | — |
Performance Compensation
2023 Performance Stock Units (PSUs) – Design and Outcome
| Feature | Details |
|---|---|
| Grant size | 6,902,000 PSUs to Shikin, split into 5 equal tranches . |
| Performance metric | Stock price hurdles sustained for 30 consecutive trading days; targets: $36.00, $46.75, $57.50, $68.25, $79.00 (each tranche 20%) . |
| Performance period | 5 years from grant (3/13/2023), with settlement on next standard quarterly vest date when achieved . |
| Holding requirements | Shikin must hold any after‑tax shares issued from earned PSUs for at least one year (accelerates at change in control or certain terminations) . |
| 2024 outcome | All tranches fully earned in <18 months; value realized on 2024 PSU vesting: $493,672,452 (of total $576,815,401 stock award vest value) . |
2024 Annual RSUs – Time-Based
| Grant date | Shares | Grant date fair value ($) | Vesting schedule | 12/31/2024 Unvested Value ($) |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 11/04/2024 | 33,902 | 5,394,147 | 1/4 on Feb 20, 2025, then quarterly (Feb/May/Aug/Nov) subject to service | 10,978,485 (at $323.83 close) |
2024 Equity Vesting and Exercises
| 2024 Activity | Shares | Value ($) |
|---|---|---|
| Stock awards vested (PSUs + RSUs) | 6,427,150 | 576,815,401; of which PSUs: $493,672,452; RSUs: $83,142,949 . |
| Options exercised | — | — (no option exercises) . |
Equity Ownership & Alignment
| Component (as of 3/31/2025) | Amount |
|---|---|
| Class A shares owned | 3,343,715 . |
| Options exercisable | 560,400 @ $5.05 strike; exp. 12/15/2029 . |
| RSUs scheduled to vest ≤60 days | 39,725 . |
| Total beneficial Class A (SEC definition) | 3,943,840 (≈1.3% of Class A) . |
| Shares pledged as collateral | None disclosed; policy prohibits hedging and caps pledging to ≤10% of held company securities . |
| Ownership guidelines | CTO required to hold equity ≥600% of base salary; compliance window generally 5 years from later of policy adoption or appointment . |
Insider selling pressure considerations:
- Near-term RSU supply: 33,902 RSUs vest over 2025 on the standard quarterly dates, representing modest incremental float relative to 2024 vesting scale .
- PSU-related selling mitigants: one-year holding period on after-tax PSU shares for Shikin reduces immediate sale pressure after 2024 vesting .
- Deep in-the-money options (560,400 @ $5.05) exist through 2029; no exercises reported in 2024 .
Employment Terms
| Provision | Terms for Shikin |
|---|---|
| Employment status | At-will; standard confidentiality, competitive safeguards, and post-employment non-solicit per executive arrangements . |
| Clawback | Company-wide Compensation Recovery Policy compliant with SEC/Nasdaq (recoup excess incentive-based comp upon restatement) . |
| Hedging/pledging | Hedging prohibited; pledging limited to ≤10% of held shares . |
| Severance (no CIC) | 12 months base salary + 12 months COBRA (taxable cash in lieu possible) . |
| Severance (double-trigger CIC) | 18 months base salary + 18 months COBRA + 100% accelerated vesting of all equity (performance awards at target) . |
| Illustrative payout (12/31/2024 values) | Outside CIC: $400,000 salary + $26,299 COBRA = $426,299; Within CIC: $600,000 salary + $39,448 COBRA + $51,457,235 equity acceleration = $52,096,683 . |
Performance & Track Record
| Measure | 2024 Result |
|---|---|
| Revenue | $4.7B (+43% YoY) . |
| Net Income | $1.6B (34% margin) . |
| Adjusted EBITDA | $2.7B (58% margin) . |
| Operating Cash Flow | $2.1B . |
| TSR (from IPO $100) | $496.67 at 12/31/2024; strong CAP/TSR alignment disclosed . |
| Stock price (company-selected measure) | $298.00 (30-day trailing minimum closing price at 12/31/2024) . |
| Strategic notes | AXON AI engine powering AppDiscovery; expansion to e‑commerce; 2025 intent to divest Apps business . |
Compensation Structure Analysis
- Pay-for-performance: Variable pay is predominantly equity. The 2023 PSU program used rigorous absolute stock price hurdles and fully earned only after sustained price appreciation over 30 trading days, aligning realized pay with shareholder value creation; no annual cash bonus program is maintained for NEOs .
- Mix shift and retention: After extraordinary 2023 PSU outcomes (fully earned in <18 months), 2024 awards for CEO/CTO pivoted to smaller one‑year RSUs to maintain retention while moderating immediate upside; Shikin realized $576.8M in 2024 vesting value (mostly PSUs), with an added one‑year hold on PSU shares to temper near-term sell pressure .
- Governance features: Clawback in place; no 280G/4999 tax gross‑ups; equity ownership guidelines require substantial skin‑in‑the‑game; hedging prohibited and pledging restricted .
Risk Indicators & Red Flags
- Related party/loans: No related‑party transactions disclosed for Shikin; broader related‑party policies overseen by Audit Committee .
- Hedging/pledging: Policy restricts; no pledging by Shikin disclosed .
- Option repricing: None disclosed; company has not granted employee options since IPO (director elections only, if chosen by director) .
- Say‑on‑pay and peer benchmarking: Compensation Committee uses Semler Brossy and a large-cap tech/adjacent peer set; program assessed against dilution and burn‑rate with stockholder alignment focus .
Investment Implications
- Alignment: Shikin’s compensation is tightly levered to long‑term stock price performance; 2023 PSUs’ full earn underscores strong execution in AI‑driven adtech and value creation for shareholders .
- Supply dynamics: 2024 PSU vests were substantial, but a one‑year holding requirement reduces immediate selling; 2025 RSU vest cadence (quarterly) is modest relative to 2024’s vest scale, suggesting manageable insider supply headwinds .
- Retention: Double‑trigger CIC protections and continued annual RSU cadence support retention; CTO ownership guidelines (600% of salary) and significant in‑the‑money options further align incentives to equity value durability .
- Execution risk: Continued ability to scale AXON, expand verticals, and manage the announced Apps divestiture are key to sustaining economics that justified PSU outcomes; compensation remains structured to reward long‑term value rather than short‑term metrics .