Skip to content
ATDbbeta
Brief
LinkedIn was acquired by Microsoft (Dec 2016) (see deal)— See the full lineage →
LinkedIn

LinkedIn

Professional Social Media & B2B AdvertisingDivision· part of Microsoftlinkedin.com

LinkedIn is a professional social platform that enables advertisers to reach decision-makers using real career data, allowing targeting by job title, company, seniority, and industry.

Last updated Oct 24, 2026 by ATDb automated enrichment · Connections updated Oct 26, 2026

In the news
Founded
2003
HQ
Sunnyvale, California, United States
Parent
Microsoft
Connections
301

AI-drafted from public sources48 sources cited

At a glance

Employees
10001+
Funding
Acquired by Microsoft for $26.2B in 2016
Revenue
$15B+
Stock
NYSE:LNKD
216integrations5competitors3corporate family3acquisitions
Social Media ManagementCustomer AcquisitionPerformance Marketing

About

The dominant professional social network and leading B2B digital advertising platform globally, with over 1.3 billion members and unmatched first-party professional audience data.

LinkedIn is a professional social platform that enables advertisers to reach decision-makers using real career data, allowing targeting by job title, company, seniority, and industry. LinkedIn's audience now tops 1.3 billion members, giving advertisers significant scale for reaching professional audiences. The platform offers more than 12 ad formats spanning objectives from awareness to lead generation, including single image, carousel, video, document, event, and thought leader ads. Ad inventory is allocated through an auction system in which ads compete against others with similar formats and target audiences, with LinkedIn setting bids to spend budgets efficiently and maximize results for the chosen objective. Advertisers can also leverage matched audiences by uploading CRM contact or company lists, retargeting website visitors via the LinkedIn Insight Tag, building audiences from video viewers and post engagers, and creating lookalike audiences to find new buyers. According to eMarketer, LinkedIn is the top platform for reaching a B2B audience with video, and video is one of its fastest-growing ad formats. Source 1: hootsuite.com — LinkedIn ads guide: Campaign types, ad specs, and expert ...

Business model

Marketplace

Target market

Enterprise, Mid-Market, SMB

What they offer

  • LinkedIn Campaign Manager

    Self-serve advertising platform for creating, managing, and optimizing ad campaigns across LinkedIn's professional audience.

  • Sponsored Content

    Native ads appearing in the LinkedIn feed, including single image, carousel, video, document, event, and thought leader ad formats.

  • Sponsored Messaging

    Direct message-based ad formats including Message Ads and Conversation Ads delivered to LinkedIn members' inboxes.

  • Text Ads

    Pay-per-click or CPM ads displayed in the right rail or top banner of LinkedIn pages.

  • Dynamic Ads

    Personalized ads that automatically populate with a member's own profile data such as photo, name, and job title.

  • LinkedIn Insight Tag

    A JavaScript pixel that enables website retargeting, conversion tracking, and audience analytics for advertisers.

  • Matched Audiences

    Audience targeting tools allowing advertisers to upload CRM lists, retarget website visitors, and build lookalike audiences.

  • LinkedIn Sales Navigator

    Premium sales intelligence tool for finding, tracking, and engaging with B2B prospects.

  • LinkedIn Recruiter

    Talent acquisition platform for sourcing and managing candidates at scale.

  • LinkedIn Learning

    Online professional development and e-learning platform with thousands of courses.

  • LinkedIn Premium

    Subscription tier offering enhanced profile visibility, InMail credits, and advanced search capabilities for professionals.

Key features

Professional audience targeting by job title, company, seniority, industry, and skills1.3 billion+ verified member profiles with real career dataAuction-based ad inventory allocation with automated biddingMatched audiences via CRM uploads, website retargeting, and engagement-based audiencesLookalike audience creation12+ ad formats spanning awareness to lead generation objectivesLinkedIn Lead Gen Forms for in-platform lead captureConversion tracking and LinkedIn Insight TagBrand safety controls and transparent reportingIntegration with major marketing automation and CRM platforms

Use cases

B2B lead generation and demand generationAccount-based marketing (ABM)Brand awareness among professional and executive audiencesTalent recruitment and employer brandingThought leadership content promotionEvent promotion and registrationRetargeting website visitors with professional contextProduct launches targeting specific industries or job functions

Customer segments

B2B marketers and demand generation teamsEnterprise advertisersSMB advertisersRecruitment and HR teamsSales and business development professionalsContent marketers and thought leadersMarketing agencies managing B2B accounts

Tech & specs

Technology stack

JavaScalaApache KafkaApache HadoopApache SparkReactEmber.jsRest.li (internal REST framework)Voldemort (distributed key-value store)Microsoft Azure

Security & compliance

GDPRCCPASOC 2ISO 27001

Deployment

Cloud

API

Yes

Corporate history
  1. 2003 · Founded
  2. 2016Acquired by Microsoft
    Still operating as part of Microsoft
Connection details
View LinkedIn’s full portfolio (2) See alternatives to LinkedIn See integrations with LinkedIn (216) See acquisitions by LinkedIn (2)

Explore further

3 views
Recent M&Aon the TimelineOn the Mapby country + regionOn the GraphNetwork around LinkedIn