Canva has announced its first-ever mass layoffs in thirteen years of operation. The Australian design platform is restructuring 1,271 roles, or 22% of its entire workforce. Some employees will lose their jobs outright. Others face role changes or mandatory relocation to centralized hubs.
CEO and co-founder Melanie Perkins confirmed the cuts in an email to staff. She called it “without doubt the hardest moment in our thirteen-year history.” The company has yet to disclose exactly how many roles are outright eliminations. Timing will vary across the 37 countries where Canva operates.
“For some people, this will mean changes to their roles or being asked to relocate to centralised hubs,” Perkins said in a note to staff. “Sadly, it will also mean saying goodbye to teammates and friends who have helped build Canva into what it is today.”
The restructuring stems from a notable slowdown in growth. Canva had planned for 30% revenue growth in 2026. Instead, the company now expects roughly 20% growth this year. This follows 38% growth in 2025 and 45% the year before that. Annualized revenue reached $3.69 billion against an internal target of $5.2 billion.
AI disruption sits squarely behind the revenue miss. New AI image-generation tools from OpenAI, Google, and others now compete directly with Canva. These tools let users create designs through simple text prompts. Consequently, they undercut the core value proposition Canva built its business on.
“We started with our mission and future goals, then considered the structures, skills and locations needed to achieve them,” said Perkins, explaining how Canva came to the decision to restructure. “Only then did we look at what this would mean for individual roles.”
The irony cuts deep for a company that embraced AI early. Canva acquired AI startup Leonardo.ai and built its own Magic Studio suite. It positioned AI as central to its future product vision. However, the same technology that powers its features now powers its competitors.
Departing employees receive a relatively generous severance package. They get at least six months’ salary regardless of their location. Additionally, they retain health insurance for 12 months where applicable. They can also keep their company MacBooks entirely. Canva is even offering a $10,000 grant toward starting their own companies.
There seems to be a broader wave of AI-driven restructuring across tech. Atlassian recently eliminated 1,600 positions in a similar move. Block and WiseTech Global also conducted layoffs. It remains to be seen how other tech companies handle the growth of AI.
