Dogan Aksoy

Cofounder, AdTheorent

Search every verified Dogan Aksoy interview, podcast appearance, and on-the-record quote — each transcript cross-checked by AI and human review to confirm speaker identity. Dogan Aksoy, cofounder of AdTheorent, discussed his entrepreneurial and investment journey on the podcast "Çıtayı Yükseltenler" in October 2025. He described moving to New York for university and graduate school, then working for global media companies for seven years before cofounding AdTheorent in 2011 with two partners. The company initially provided media planning and buying services before shifting to a programmatic demand-side platform for mobile advertising. Aksoy recounted a private equity round in 2017 that included a partial exit, the company's Nasdaq listing in 2021, and a full exit in 2023 involving negotiations with a Chinese company, which he said included disagreements and strategic decisions to walk away from the table. Aksoy also spoke about his transition to angel investing, which he began in 2017 after his exit. He noted that his early investments included around five or six startups, often involving founders he knew, and he acknowledged that angel investing has not gone very well so far, describing an initial "J curve" where early losses can cause concern. He attributed early fundraising success at AdTheorent to a $300,000 pre-seed from cofounder Anthony, who had a prior exit, and a seed round from two partners of Anthony's old company who had started a small fund. Aksoy also recommended a book during the episode, which the hosts noted was a first for the podcast.