NullPointerException in MobileAds.initialize() across multiple apps starting mid-September

[Aaron]

Hi team,

We are experiencing a NullPointerException originating from MobileAds.initialize(). This crash is affecting two of our flagship Android apps.

Stack Trace:

java.lang.NullPointerException: Attempt to invoke interface method 'void [obfuscated_A].d0(com.google.android.gms.internal.ads.[obfuscated_B])' on a null object reference
at com.google.android.gms.ads.internal.client.zzl.zza()(com.google.android.gms:play-services-ads-api@@24.5.0:6)
at com.google.android.gms.ads.internal.client.zzas.zzc()(com.google.android.gms:play-services-ads-api@@24.5.0:12)
at com.google.android.gms.ads.internal.client.zzba.zzf()(com.google.android.gms:play-services-ads-api@@24.5.0:1)
at com.google.android.gms.ads.internal.client.zzba.zzd()(com.google.android.gms:play-services-ads-api@@24.5.0:11)
at com.google.android.gms.ads.internal.client.zzaz.zzg()(com.google.android.gms:play-services-ads-api@@24.5.0:2)
at com.google.android.gms.ads.zzb.zza()(com.google.android.gms:play-services-ads-api@@24.5.0:1)
at com.google.android.gms.ads.preload.zzb.<init>()(com.google.android.gms:play-services-ads-api@@24.5.0:1)
at com.google.android.gms.ads.internal.client.zzep.<init>()(com.google.android.gms:play-services-ads-api@@24.5.0:1)
at com.google.android.gms.ads.internal.client.zzey.zzq()(com.google.android.gms:play-services-ads-api@@24.5.0:27)
at com.google.android.gms.ads.MobileAds.initialize()(com.google.android.gms:play-services-ads-api@@24.5.0:2)
at com.our.internal.ads.sdk.AdsInitializer$initialize$1.invokeSuspend()(AdsInitializer.kt:133)
...

Some details:

1. We build and maintain an internal SDK that both apps consume. This SDK is responsible for wrapping and initializing the Google Mobile Ads SDK. The MobileAds.initialize() call is made from a coroutine within this internal SDK during app startup.
   
   
2. The crash first appeared in App A on September 18th 2025, and in App B on September 19th 2025.
   
   
3. Critically, there were no new versions of this internal SDK or changes to the version of the play-services-ads that we use at this time. We updated to version 24.5.0 in July to fix the java.util.ConcurrentModificationException as noted in the release notes. We still use this version today.
   
   
4. To give some context on numbers and impact, over the last month:
   1. App A: ~0.376% of ~880k unique users have been impacted.
   2. App B: ~0.675% of ~21.5k unique users have been impacted.
      
      

To reiterate, we haven't made or released any changes regarding the version of the play-services-ads SDK that our internal SDK uses, nor have we made other changes in either App A or B related to ads at this time.

The synchronized timing across two of our independent apps is of particular interest to us - has there been any changes around September 18/19?

Happy to submit full crash logs if you need more details.

Kind regards,

Aaron.

[Mobile Ads SDK Forum Advisor]

Hi Aaron,

Thank you for contacting the Mobile Ads SDK Support team.

It is always recommended to use the latest version of the SDKs to avoid any issues. As of today, the latest version of Android is 24.7.0. 

Could you confirm whether the mentioned issue is reproducible in our sample Project? Could you try once by updating to the latest version and if the issue still persists then kindly provide the below information via reply to author option for further investigation? 

• Sample project reproducing the issue
• Deobfuscate Stack Traces: The class names in the stack traces (like zzfnm, zzkt, etc.) are obfuscated by ProGuard/R8. Without the original names, we cannot identify the exact functions within the GMA SDK that are involved
• Affected devices
• Steps to replicate the issue

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Thanks,
 

Mobile Ads SDK Team

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[2025-10-31 14:35:01Z GMT] This message is in relation to case "ref:!00D1U01174p.!500Ht01vSL8G:ref" (ADR-00338103)