Founder Story: Oren Kaniel, CEO & Co-Founder of AppsFlyer

From Childhood Passion to Industry Pioneer: A Conversation with Oren Kaniel, CEO & Co-Founder of AppsFlyer

Background: Oren Kaniel, CEO and co-founder of AppsFlyer, discovered his passion for technology early, writing code at age eight. Inspired by the rise of smartphones, Oren co-founded AppsFlyer with Reshef Mann to tackle challenges in mobile app attribution and analytics. Oren’s relationship with Pitango began in 2014, when Pitango Partner Issac Hillel saw and invested in the vision he and Reshef were pursuing. Isaac has continued to back Oren and the AppsFlyer team to present-day. 

Oren, can you share more about your early experiences with technology and how they influenced you?

I grew up in Israel in a time when personal computers were a novelty. My parents had one of the first computers, and I remember being completely fascinated by it. I started coding at the age of eight, creating small projects like drawing shapes on the screen. While other kids played games, I was more interested in figuring out how they worked and how to create my own.

In high school I worked at a computer store, where I assisted customers and fixed hardware in the lab. I sold computers as an employee, and then offered my independent services to teach them how to use them, biking around my neighborhood as I went from one customer to the next. 

Later on, my brother Dror and I explored Bulletin Board Systems (BBS), which allowed people to connect via phone lines to share files, games and chat. This was before the internet, and it was fascinating to interact with others in such a personal and direct way. 

These early experiences gave me a passion for problem-solving and understanding how things work. My brother and I even set up our own BBS, letting people log in, upload and download files. The sense of community and collaboration it fostered was amazing, especially considering how limited access to technology was.

How did these experiences shape your career and eventually lead to the founding of AppsFlyer? 

My early career began as a software engineer, but I soon realized I wanted to work more closely with customers. I moved into a services and support role, even though it meant taking a pay cut and stepping down in seniority. That decision changed everything—it taught me the importance of seeing and understanding the customer and the value they expect from a company. No matter how innovative or technically advanced a company is, its ultimate goal is to serve its customers. 

During my MBA program, in an exchange at Wharton, I bought a used iPhone for research, and it completely blew my mind. I knew immediately that smartphones would revolutionize everything about how we interact with technology. However, I noticed that app developers were struggling to measure user behavior on mobile platforms. There was no equivalent to the robust analytics available for websites and I saw a clear gap for an independent, unbiased solution to help developers and brands navigate this new landscape.

When I returned to Israel, I co-founded AppsFlyer together with Reshef. Neither of us had a background in marketing or advertising, so we came with open minds and were curious about everything. We listened to our customers to understand their challenges and solve them. 

Today, AppsFlyer is the largest mobile attribution and analytics company in the world, but we ensured that all the experience we gained couldn’t blind us. We are still listening and learning, which is the foundation on which AppsFlyer is built. 

What was the journey of AppsFlyer when it came to raising funds? When did Pitango come into the picture? 

AppsFlyer isn’t a simple consumer product—it’s a professional, sustainable solution that takes time to understand, so raising funds in the early days was extremely difficult. Many investors doubted our experience or struggled to understand what we were building and its potential. This led us to focus on creating value for our customers, knowing that happy customers would ultimately attract the right investors.

Pitango came on board during a critical period, leading our Series A round in 2014. They saw the long-term potential in what we were building and shared our vision. Their support was and continues to be instrumental in helping us grow, and the relationship I share with Isaac Hillel is very special to this day. 

Can you share an example of a pivotal early moment for AppsFlyer?

One of our early breaks came at a lecture hosted by Google. The speaker was discussing Google Analytics for mobile devices, but I noticed they weren’t addressing a critical question – how do you know where your users are coming from and what the acquisition cost is? I debated whether to ask, knowing that Google could put hundreds of developers to that task and build it themselves. But in the end, I asked, and that moment changed everything.

After the lecture, a participant approached me. He ran one of the largest apps in Israel and wanted to try our solution. We sent him the SDK, but it initially crashed his app. It was a tough moment, but instead of walking away, I asked if he was willing to work with us to debug the issue. That collaboration built trust, and he eventually joined AppsFlyer, becoming an instrumental part of our team for over 12 years, building a significant part of the product.

This experience taught me the importance of building strong partnerships, shouting your dreams, opportunities are everywhere, big companies move slow, one of the only advantages of a startup is their agility and showing that even setbacks can lead to incredible opportunities.

How has AppsFlyer’s technology evolved over the years?

At its core, AppsFlyer is a measurement and analytics platform designed to help companies understand how users interact with their apps and digital products in order to make data-driven decisions. One of our key innovations is in attribution—identifying where a user came from and which marketing efforts led to their actions, such as app installs, usage or purchases. Early on, this was a significant challenge for app developers because mobile behavior differed from traditional web analytics.

As the industry advances, so do we. One of our most impactful innovations has been deep linking, which ensures a seamless transition between web and app environments. Customer journeys often start with a link, and our technology retains the context of the journey across platforms. Our deep linking technology eliminates user frustration of starting over in a different environment, and allows companies to measure and optimize every step of the journey. 

How has AppsFlyer approached innovation, especially with the rise of AI?

I’ve witnessed three major revolutions in technology: the rise of software, the internet, and smartphones. Each one transformed how we live and work. I thought that was enough for one lifetime–and then AI came along. 

When OpenAI released ChatGPT, I felt the same complete awe I felt when first interacting with the internet or holding my first iPhone. AI has the potential to transform everything, faster and with greater impact than we’ve seen before.

AI democratizes power, making advanced tools accessible to everyone. This will disrupt entire industries. I believe 80% of the software we use today will become irrelevant within five years. Companies must think deeply about their unique strengths and how to harness AI to enhance them. For AppsFlyer, this means leveraging AI to streamline customer interactions, create predictive analytics, and measure increasingly complex user journeys.

Looking ahead, I envision a world where AI will  break down silos between apps and services. Imagine planning a vacation—AI will suggest options, book flights, and arrange everything without you having to switch between apps. At AppsFlyer, our role will be to measure these interactions and connect the dots to help companies understand and optimize the entire customer journey.

What advice would you give to aspiring entrepreneurs?

The most important advice I can give is don’t blindly follow advice. While important, only you know what’s best for you. You’re the only one creating what you’re building, so you need to know when to keep an open mind and follow your instincts. 

Secondly, always, and I mean always, do your due diligence on investors. Make calls, speak to their portfolio companies and understand their approach. Look beyond the funding—find partners who align with your values and vision. I’m very happy I followed my instincts and am excited for the future of AppsFlyer.