Canva Acquires Generative AI Startup Leonardo.ai

The graphic design platform Canva has announced the acquisition of the Australian generative AI platform Leonardo.ai today through a media release. 

“We’re thrilled to announce our acquisition of generative AI platform Leonardo as we double down on building and scaling the world’s best visual AI,” wrote Cameron Adams, Canva co-founder and chief product officer, in the document.

Leonardo.ai’s 120 employees—including designers, researchers, and engineers—will join Canva’s team. “This acquisition bolsters our ability to supercharge our growing suite of AI products while investing in continued research and innovation to unlock the future of visual AI,” states the document.

Adams told TechCrunch that Leonardo.ai would continue to work independently, but with access to Canva’s resources and with a focus on research and development as well as quick innovation.

Canva compared the acquisition process to Affinity’s—a creative software acquired earlier this year, in March—which also has an independent agreement and has been supported for faster development by Canva.

According to TechCrunch, Leonardo.ai has over 19 million users and stands out among similar platforms for the control they provide users, with features like Live Canvas in which users can create quick sketches, and the AI-powered tool can anticipate the final result and create photorealistic images.

According to Canva, they now serve 190 million customers across the world and expect to provide new services and keep expanding. The company also announced a new partnership with Getty Images a few days ago.

While Leonardo.ai will work independently, multiple features from both companies will be integrated. “We’ll look to integrate Leonardo’s technology into Magic Studio, which we’re very excited about,” said Adams to TechCrunch. “This might include making existing Magic Studio tools more powerful, or introducing new generative AI capabilities powered by Leonardo’s models directly in Canva.”

Canva is focusing on growing fast in the AI market to stay relevant as multiple companies are developing similar products. Microsoft recently launched its AI-powered Designer app, considered direct competition to Canva, all the while Adobe is also working on new AI tools.