AppLovin is selling a majority stake to Orient Hontai Capital for $1.4B

Mobile ad startup AppLovin announced today it has agreed to sell a majority stake of the company to Chinese private equity firm Orient Hontai Capital for $1.4 billion.

We first reported that AppLovin was in talks with a Chinese company for a $1.5 billion acquisition back in August. In his blog post announcing the deal, co-founder and CEO Adam Foroughi wrote:

While this deal is a tremendous validation of the outstanding product we’ve built, it’s also particularly remarkable because it’s the most sizeable outcome for a mobile advertising company ever. When we began the company we had difficulty raising capital. We heard no from multiple investors, but that didn’t deter us. We believed our timing and business objectives were right. Rather than get down about raising minimal capital, we focused on building a business that could grow on its own and sustain itself, and that’s exactly what we did.

As Foroughi notes, AppLovin only raised $4 million from angel investors. He also said the company will keep its headquarters in Palo Alto and that “the core of AppLovin remains and endures: our vision, culture, industry leadership, valued customers and team.”

AppLovin says its technology helps advertisers target and deliver personalized ads to people who are similar to their existing user base. We’ve heard that the company is projecting $500 million in ad spend on the platform for the year.

Fortune broke the news of the deal this morning. Oh, and in case you’re wondering: Yes, the company name was at least partly inspired by the movie Superbad.