Where to begin? Two weeks ago, thousands of mobile practitioners, founders, product leaders, and app growth pros came to a record-breaking MAU Vegas—attendance was up 27% from last year. The energy was off the charts.

My favorite part of the past two weeks has been scrolling through our new social wall, where every #mauvegas, #mauvegas2025 #mau2025 post has been captured.

I read every post on the social wall —and this is what stood out from the community.

Plus, playback sessions are available in the app for anyone who registered for MAU Vegas!

The Evolution of the Modern Marketer

Silos are dissolving. The marketers leading today aren’t just specialists—they’re strategic connectors across product, brand, growth, and AI. One quote summed it up perfectly:

“Product, brand, growth, and AI aren’t silos anymore. The best teams are treating them like one ecosystem.”

AI isn’t replacing us—it’s giving us time back to focus on strategy, inputs, and resonance. The most future-forward teams are building systems, not stacking tools.
 

Creative was everywhere at MAU

Today, creative isn't a deliverable—it’s where we test ideas, validate positioning, and connect emotionally. Teams are using UA creative to pressure-test product concepts before they’re even built. They’re aligning content to the user’s lifecycle, not just channels. And they’re building it together—product, brand, CRM, and UA in one room.

“Creative is the closest we get to showing users what we stand for.”
 

Attribution Has Its Place. But It’s Not Enough.

The smartest teams at MAU weren’t asking “What performed best?”. They were asking:

• What channels actually drive long-term value?
• What’s influencing retention after Day 7?
• Are we building equity, or just buying impressions?

Post-IDFA, attribution is only part of the story. The new playbook mixes in incrementality testing, media mix modeling, and qualitative inputs. Because sustainable growth isn’t just measurable—it’s explainable.
 

Community Is the New Acquisition Channel

From Benjamin Webley's amazing MONOPOLY GO!’s 9M-strong Facebook group story on the Main Stage from Scopely to Gen Z-led growth at Cal AI, one thing was clear: people trust people more than ads.

Whether it’s in-app trading cultures, influencer ecosystems, or product-led virality, brands are building momentum around shared identity—not just performance spend. Some of the strongest growth loops are powered by community, not CPMs.

Marketing Is Getting Smarter—and More Human

AI is making personalization easier, but the best teams aren’t focused on automation for automation’s sake. They’re designing for moments that matter across the entire lifecycle journey, treating users as dynamic, not static.

Retention is the new acquisition. And thoughtful engagement beats volume.
 

Monetization & Infrastructure Are Strategic Again

With more control over payments, teams are reconsidering what option is best for them and decisions are moving fast. The lesson: Smart teams are rethinking their architecture—not just optimizing campaigns.
 

The Stack Is Shifting

Time across the broader app ecosystem is expanding. While top publishers remain foundational to many strategies, teams are finding meaningful growth by complementing them with placements in high-intent, niche, and community-driven apps. It's not either/or—it’s about building a more diversified, resilient media mix that reflects how user behavior is evolving. Teams that diversify their media mix are seeing serious performance lifts—not by spending more, but by finding relevance.

Behind the scenes, growth orgs are restructuring too. Creative, lifecycle, product, and analytics are finally sitting at the same table. It’s not about doing more. It’s about working smarter, together.
 

Representation Isn’t a Side Conversation—It’s a Growth Lever

One of the most powerful throughlines of MAU was seeing women and underrepresented leaders on stage, in sessions, and running the room. Big congrats to MOLOCO for bringing forward the first all-female panel of leaders on the Main Stage!

Events like the Women’s Forum and Women in Leader(sip) weren’t just great programming—they were necessary. The impact of these moments rippled through the week. From pay transparency to mentorship to marketing and product leadership, these conversations are shaping where the industry is heading next.

This isn’t about who gets to be in the room. It’s about who leads from the front.

Connections Make MAU

From Amanda Lulewicz, a member of our Strategic Council.

🤝 MAU is always THE place to connect with new fellow industry leaders, strengthen connections with existing contacts, and reconnect with long-time industry friends.

Building connections with your customers/users. This was a hot topic in many discussions - whether it was about the importance of getting user feedback, building long-term loyalty, or the latest tactics to capture their attention.
 

A Quick Personal Note

As someone behind the scenes, I loved the energy of MAU 2025—but there’s always room to improve. The best takeaways were real conversations, honest reflections, and shared visions for what’s next. What stuck most wasn’t a new platform or metric, but how open the MAU community was to learning, sharing, and growing together.

Please take a moment to fill out the post-show survey (we do read every comment). Want changes? Tell us. A new survey reminder went out today.

Plus, I also loved Steve P. Young take on what he learned at MAU so I’m sharing it here.

And yes, this newsletter’s a little late—two sick kids and a Girl Scouts encampment weekend will do that. But I wanted to take the time to truly reflect on your takeaways. Thank you for showing up—and for making this event what it is. Thank you to AppsFlyer for your continued support as the Presenting Sponsor. There's still time to follow up with their team, and all the sponsors at MAU.

On behalf of the entire MAU Team, what an honor to host MAU Vegas this year. See you May 19–21, 2026!

Angela Harar