Mobile Dev Memo Podcast

On this week's episode of the podcast, I am joined by Julian Togelius, a professor of computer science at NYU and director of the NYU Game Innovation Lab. We delve into how games serve as the perfect sandbox for AI development, the potential for generative tools to revolutionize production workflows, and how the future of play might involve infinite, procedurally generated worlds that adapt to every player's unique style. Among other things, we discuss:
How AI researchers leverage the inherent fun and learning mechanisms within video game environments
Whether the financial markets function as a complex game requiring the same reinforcement learning strategies used in digital play
If consumer backlash against AI-generated assets will ultimately give way to the promise of faster and more ambitious development cycles
What possibilities exist for truly open-ended games that utilize real-time world generation to create infinite, personalized player journeys
How the role of the game developer shifts toward system architecture and critical thinking as coding becomes increasingly automated
When and if world models will transition from impressive tech demos to foundational tools for interactive entertainment
Thanks to the sponsors of this week’s episode of the Mobile Dev Memo podcast:
⁠⁠⁠⁠INCRMNTAL⁠⁠⁠. True attribution measures incrementality, always on.
Xsolla⁠. With the Xsolla Web Shop, you can create a direct storefront, cut fees down to as low as 5%, and keep players engaged with bundles, rewards, and analytics.
⁠Branch⁠. Branch is an AI-powered MMP, connecting every paid, owned, and organic touchpoint so growth teams can see exactly where to put their dollars to bring users in the door and keep them coming back
Interested in sponsoring the Mobile Dev Memo podcast? Contact Mobile Dev Memo advertising.

On this week's episode of the podcast, I am joined by Phil Black, one of the co-hosts of the Game Economist Cast, a podcast dedicated to game economy design, and a consultant with Game Economist Consulting. Previously, Phil held game economist and analytics roles at Amazon Games, DICE, and Scopely. Phil is also a panelist on the This Week in Games (TWIG) podcast.
Phil joins me on this episode to examine the shifting dynamics of the mobile gaming economy, from the consolidation of high-revenue genres to the strategic adoption of AI and direct-to-consumer models. Among other things, we discuss:
How the concentration of mobile gaming revenue into puzzle and 4X genres reshapes the competitive landscape for independent developers
Whether the integration of hyper-casual mechanics into core loops represents a fundamental evolution of the modern mobile gaming economy
Why the transition from visual AI outputs to deep personalization remains the primary value proposition for future game monetization
What the divergence between Android and iOS installation gates reveals about the health of the global mobile marketing ecosystem
If the rise of third-party web shops and direct-to-consumer models can effectively counteract the platform fees of major stores
How the emergence of warbonds and sampling-based monetization strategies signals a shift away from traditional battle pass reward structures
When the mobile gaming industry will move beyond post-ATT recovery strategies
Thanks to the sponsors of this week’s episode of the Mobile Dev Memo podcast:
⁠⁠⁠⁠INCRMNTAL⁠⁠⁠. True attribution measures incrementality, always on.
Xsolla⁠. With the Xsolla Web Shop, you can create a direct storefront, cut fees down to as low as 5%, and keep players engaged with bundles, rewards, and analytics.
⁠Branch⁠. Branch is an AI-powered MMP, connecting every paid, owned, and organic touchpoint so growth teams can see exactly where to put their dollars to bring users in the door and keep them coming back
Interested in sponsoring the Mobile Dev Memo podcast? Contact Mobile Dev Memo advertising.
The Mobile Dev Memo podcast is available on:
YouTube
Apple Podcasts
Spotify

On this week's episode of the podcast, I am joined by Andrew Lipsman to discuss the evolving landscape of agentic commerce and retail media. Andrew is an independent analyst and consultant who runs the Media, Ads + Commerce blog, which covers the retail media landscape. Prior to this, Andrew held roles at eMarketer and comScore. This is Andrew's third appearance on the podcast.
In our conversation, Andrew and I take stock of the evolution of the concept of agentic commerce since we last spoke six months ago, moving from the initial hype of autonomous AI agents to a more grounded reality of AI-assisted shopping experiences. Our conversation examines the failure of independent instant checkout experiments, the strength of established retail ecosystems like Amazon and Walmart, and the emerging opportunities in performance television and in-store digital advertising. Among other things, we discuss:
Whether the failure of instant checkout experiments signals a permanent preference for direct retailer relationships over AI intermediaries
How the paradox of choice and the need for basket building hinder the efficiency of single-option agentic transactions
If the success of Amazon's Rufus proves that AI utility belongs on retail platforms rather than independent LLM interfaces
Why the western market's fragmented ecosystem makes the development of a Chinese-style shopping super app highly improbable
What the massive investment in AI infrastructure means for the competitive landscape against established giants like Amazon and Google
When performance TV and in-store retail media will finally become a core priority for brand-focused chief marketing officers
How Shopify's role as an audience network might evolve as direct-to-consumer brands seek diversification beyond Meta and Google
Thanks to the sponsors of this week’s episode of the Mobile Dev Memo podcast:
⁠⁠⁠⁠INCRMNTAL⁠⁠⁠. True attribution measures incrementality, always on.
Xsolla⁠. With the Xsolla Web Shop, you can create a direct storefront, cut fees down to as low as 5%, and keep players engaged with bundles, rewards, and analytics.
⁠Branch⁠. Branch is an AI-powered MMP, connecting every paid, owned, and organic touchpoint so growth teams can see exactly where to put their dollars to bring users in the door and keep them coming back
Interested in sponsoring the Mobile Dev Memo podcast? Contact Mobile Dev Memo advertising.
The Mobile Dev Memo podcast is available on:
YouTube
Apple Podcasts
Spotify

The Prosperous Society is a podcast series by Mobile Dev Memo that articulates an AI Bull Thesis for the digital economy. It argues that the pervasive application of AI to the digital economy will be broadly economically expansionary, leading to increased individual prosperity, expanded consumer choice, and greater human agency.
In Episode 3, I make the case that artificial intelligence stands to erode the Pareto Principle as it applies to production, as AI-enabled distribution efficiencies will enable firms to reach niche, specific audiences profitably. This will result in a wider diversity of goods being produced, creating a compounding effect on economic expansion and allowing consumers to better explore and define their own preferences and tastes.
Thanks to the sponsors of this week’s episode of the Mobile Dev Memo podcast:
⁠⁠INCRMNTAL⁠⁠⁠. True attribution measures incrementality, always on.
Xsolla⁠. With the Xsolla Web Shop, you can create a direct storefront, cut fees down to as low as 5%, and keep players engaged with bundles, rewards, and analytics.
⁠Branch⁠. Branch is an AI-powered MMP, connecting every paid, owned, and organic touchpoint so growth teams can see exactly where to put their dollars to bring users in the door and keep them coming back
Interested in sponsoring the Mobile Dev Memo podcast? Contact Mobile Dev Memo advertising.
The Mobile Dev Memo podcast is available on:
Spotify
YouTube
Apple Podcasts

On this week's episode of the podcast, I am joined by Dan Taylor, the Vice President of Global Ads at Google. We discuss the profound impact of generative AI on search behavior and the technological evolution required to support the next era of digital advertising. Among other things, we discuss:
How the shift from keyword-based search to conversational intent will redefine the core mechanics of performance marketing attribution
Whether the increased monetization of long-tail conversational queries can offset the potential traffic loss for traditional web publishers
What role LLM-based ad ranking plays in reducing irrelevant placements and improving the overall efficiency of digital campaigns
If the consolidation of advertising tools into automated systems like Performance Max represents the final end of manual control
Why the emergence of universal commerce protocols might eventually allow AI agents to handle the entire checkout process autonomously
How the return to marketing mix modeling and first-party data signals a broader renaissance in rigorous measurement techniques
Thanks to the sponsors of this week’s episode of the Mobile Dev Memo podcast:
⁠⁠⁠⁠INCRMNTAL⁠⁠⁠. True attribution measures incrementality, always on.
Xsolla⁠. With the Xsolla Web Shop, you can create a direct storefront, cut fees down to as low as 5%, and keep players engaged with bundles, rewards, and analytics.
⁠Branch⁠. Branch is an AI-powered MMP, connecting every paid, owned, and organic touchpoint so growth teams can see exactly where to put their dollars to bring users in the door and keep them coming back
Interested in sponsoring the Mobile Dev Memo podcast? Contact Mobile Dev Memo advertising.
The Mobile Dev Memo podcast is available on:
YouTube
Apple Podcasts
Spotify