"Achieving success in marketing without AI is becoming increasingly difficult," says Gunay Azer from Gamelight about the platform and the situation in the mobile advertising market

Gamelight is a mobile UA platform for game developers and publishers. We spoke with its founder, Günay Azer, about the startup's approach to data handling, its proprietary AI algorithm, rewarding ads, and much more.

Alexander Semenov, App2Top: Hi Günay! Let's start our interview with some personal questions. Please tell us about yourself: how long have you been involved in mobile marketing, and what are your responsibilities at Gamelight?

Günay Azer, Gamelight: Hi Alex! Mobile games and ad technologies have been a significant part of my professional journey: I have been working in these industries for over 10 years. During this time, I founded and grew three startups, including Gamelight.

As for my role in Gamelight, I am responsible for implementing innovations and enhancing strategy, striving to ensure that we are always one step ahead in mobile marketing.

On a day-to-day basis, I work closely with the team on improving processes related to user acquisition. We enhance the efficiency and effectiveness of UA.

I am especially proud of the AI algorithm we have created.

We will talk about the AI algorithm later, but let's start with the company's history. How did it all begin?

Günay: Gamelight was founded by Florian Elmies and me in early 2023 in Germany.

We both concluded that traditional approaches to user acquisition were outdated and had lost efficiency. They rely too heavily on assumptions and manual targeting. Both methods are far from ideal.

We conceived of a platform that relies exclusively on real data, helping UA managers and game publishers achieve reliable and stable results without the labor-intensive and often inefficient routines.

As a result, Gamelight quickly grew into the largest marketing platform in the industry, specializing in rewards. It was amazing to see how much we accomplished in such a short timeframe!

Before we talk about growth, let's focus specifically on Gamelight. What exactly does it do?

Günay: Today, Gamelight is a platform that connects mobile game developers with the right users for them.

How exactly does that happen?

Günay: We use advanced AI technology. It analyzes player behavior, their interests, demographics, and much more across different projects. This is to identify users most likely to be interested in a specific product.

Being a rewarding platform, you incentivize the audience not only with the right offer?

Günay: Yes. While spending time in games supported by our platform, they earn loyalty points that can be exchanged for various rewards, such as PayPal, Amazon, or Google Play gift cards.

This approach not only provides users with positive experiences but also helps developers grow their audience and achieve excellent results—high engagement and long-tail sales.

The company is very young. Yet it has managed to become one of the biggest players in the mobile advertising market. How did you achieve this?

Günay: I believe our rapid growth can be attributed to three key elements: we address current problems, spend minimally, and build the right team.

One of the most serious issues we faced initially was optimizing the scaling of mobile games through paid user acquisition.

This optimization is a complex and labor-intensive process. We set ourselves the task of making it efficient, reliable, and data-driven. This allowed us to create a solution that truly benefits UA managers and publishers.

Another challenge for us was bootstrapping. The lack of external funding meant that we had to be disciplined and meticulous in making every decision. Initially, this approach slowed us down, but it also allowed us to work on Gamelight on our terms, giving us complete control over the project.

Furthermore, the fact that Florian and I complemented each other's skills played a huge role. This positively affected our effectiveness as leaders, helping us overcome obstacles and make quick decisions.

Additionally, we bet on a diverse team of experts from around the world. By fostering a culture of innovation and experimentation, we could move swiftly, adapt to challenges, and remain leaders in such a competitive space as mobile marketing.

Let's move on to the topic of AI. In every presentation and interview, your company mentions its AI. Tell us about it.

Günay: Our AI algorithm simplifies and optimizes user acquisition.

What exactly does it do?

Günay: It analyzes massive amounts of information, including data on how the app is used, the demographics of its users, their behavioral patterns, and much more.

Based on the collected data, the AI creates user profiles. It then identifies patterns and matches profiles between current active users and potential new ones. This allows:

Companies to target accurately;
Players to receive the most relevant project recommendations.

As a result of such UA optimization, the game gains a new loyal audience, with increased engagement, retention, and LTV observed.

Which metrics are you focused on when working with applications?

Günay: We rely on a set of metrics that reflect user engagement and retention and give an overall picture of the application.

Does your focus on specific metrics change depending on the game genre?

Günay: Certain key metrics are important for all genres, but the focus can shift depending on the type of game.

For instance, we monitor playtime by looking at when, how often, and how long users play. This helps us understand gaming habits and preferences. For casual games, metrics like the number of active users, session length, and retention are prioritized, as these titles rely on frequent and short sessions. In more hardcore genres (e.g., strategy games), we generally look more at session frequency, playtime duration, and LTV, which are crucial for deep engagement analysis.

Our AI-centric approach allows us to better understand user behavior. For example, if a player spends 80% of their time on strategy games and 20% on casual projects, we identify this as a pattern to predict their interests and preferences.

Ultimately, success with metrics is, first and foremost, about understanding how users interact with the game and, secondly, using this knowledge to optimize engagement, retention, and revenue.

How is your AI algorithm different from similar systems on the market?

Günay: Unlike other platforms that simply show ads based on bid size, our AI algorithm focuses on selecting the right audience for a specific game, as I mentioned earlier.

It also enables campaign optimization for metrics such as return on ad spend (ROAS), ARPU, and retention.

Plus, the algorithm doesn't wait for downloads to happen for optimization. It starts analyzing and predicting user reactions even before the ad is shown, determining when it should be displayed and which creatives will resonate the most.

Interesting. Do you think it's possible to succeed in the mobile marketing market today without using AI?

Günay: In today's highly competitive market, achieving success in marketing without AI is increasingly difficult. User behavior is complex, and the volume of data required for analysis is massive. Without AI, processing such datasets effectively, extracting actionable insights, and adapting campaigns in real-time is nearly impossible.

In this context, what's your balance between manual work and AI?

Günay: Our AI systems are designed to operate autonomously and achieve effective results with minimal personal intervention.

However, when necessary, we allow our client service managers to perform individual manual optimizations based on preferences and requirements. In this regard, we are quite flexible.

Let's discuss cases. Can you share any success stories?

Günay: Of course! For example, the publisher JOYCITY partnered with us to promote the strategy game Gunship Battle in Japan and the UK. Thanks to our AI algorithm and targeted strategy, we achieved impressive results:

213% ROAS growth from days 7 to 30 in Japan;
143% ROAS growth over the same period in the UK;
An increase in 30-day ROAS target indicators by 48% in Japan and 35.78% in the UK.

Gunship Battle

Another great example is our work with Brain Games team on their casual title Word Farm Adventure in the USA. By increasing the bid by just 40%, we achieved:

A 480% increase in UA volume;
142% overachievement of the short-term 7-day ROAS;
145% overachievement of the long-term 30-day ROAS.

Word Farm Adventure

Notably, within the AppsFlyer Performance Index, we were recognized as the top source in the rewarding ad segment and one of the best sources in key markets like Western Europe, Japan, and South Korea.

And the last question: what new features and innovations can we expect from Gamelight?

We have several intriguing developments on the horizon.

While we continue to enhance gaming apps with innovative tools and solutions, we are currently focused on expanding our offerings for a broader range of app categories. For us, this means finding new ways to provide value, optimize campaigns, and help brands engage users more effectively.

We are also working on new features that will give advertisers new opportunities for user acquisition. These innovations are designed to push the boundaries of what's possible in mobile marketing, enabling brands to connect with users more effectively.

We can't reveal all the details just yet. There’s a lot to look forward to, and we eagerly anticipate sharing it soon!