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Canva co-founder and CEO Melanie Perkins told staff on Wednesday the company must "refound Canva," calling it "the hardest moment in our thirteen-year history."
The change hits 1,271 roles, some cut and others moved to central hubs. Product, growth and platform teams merge into one organization and management layers go.
Perkins did not directly blame AI, though she wrote that new technology is transforming what people create. Investors have been less shy. Figma has fallen 44% this year despite strong revenue growth, and Canva's biggest venture backer, Blackbird, cut its by 17% to $34.9 billion in August.
In 2025 Canva cut 10 of its 12 technical writers. This is its first company-wide round, and people leaving keep their Slack and Gmail until the end of the week.
Canva restructures 1,271 jobs, 22% of its staff, after growth slows for the first time in a decade
Canva co-founder and CEO Melanie Perkins told staff on Wednesday the company must "refound Canva," calling it "the hardest moment in our thirteen-year history." The change hits 1,271 roles, some cut and others moved to central hubs. Product, growth and platform teams merge into one organization and management layers go.
Perkins did not directly blame AI, though she wrote that new technology is transforming what people create. Investors have been less shy. Figma has fallen 44% this year despite strong revenue growth, and Canva's biggest venture backer, Blackbird, cut its valuation by 17% to $34.9 billion in August. In 2025 Canva cut 10 of its 12 technical writers. This is its first company-wide round, and people leaving keep their Slack and Gmail until the end of the week. SourcesB
Sources
- BCanva unveils mass job cuts (The Age)theage.com.au
This story ran in the Morning Brief of November 4th 2026.