Canva to cut or relocate 1,271 jobs in deepest restructure yet

Canva is cutting or relocating 1,271 people — 22% of its global workforce — in a restructure its chief executive calls the hardest moment in the company's thirteen-year history.

CEO Melanie Perkins told staff in an email on Wednesday that the changes would shrink the Australian-founded design platform's payroll to its leanest shape since its early years. She did not specify how many of the 1,271 affected roles are outright layoffs versus relocations.

The restructure focuses on what the company described as "collapsing layers" and bringing "more teams together in person" at centralised hubs.

"For some people, this will mean changes to their roles or being asked to relocate to centralised hubs," Perkins said. "Sadly, it will also mean saying goodbye to teammates and friends who have helped build Canva into what it is today."

She described the restructure as "without doubt the hardest moment in our thirteen-year history."

What do departing staff receive?

The severance terms are unusually generous by tech-sector standards. Departing employees get at least six months of salary. They keep healthcare coverage for a further 12 months in countries where workers receive that benefit. They also keep their laptops.

On top of that, Canva is offering US$10,000 (A$14,000) grants to those leaving who want to start their own ventures.

"We know relocating is a big decision for those being asked to consider it, and we're committed to making the process as smooth as possible with comprehensive support," Perkins said.

Where does this fit in the tech jobs slump?

Canva's move lands amid a wave of restructures across the software sector. Atlassian, the Sydney-based software company, has cut 1,600 jobs. Block, the owner of Afterpay, and logistics software maker WiseTech Global have also shed staff.

The common pressure point is artificial intelligence. Software companies are fighting cheaper AI disrupters on one front while aggressively embedding AI tools into their own products on another. Established players have rejected the idea of a "SaaS-pocalypse" — the theory that AI becomes so advanced specialised software turns redundant — yet many have overhauled their business models in response or adopted AI tools at speed.

Notably, Canva did not mention AI in its restructure announcement. That silence separates it from Atlassian, Block and WiseTech, which have all framed cuts partly around shifting technology priorities.

What is at stake for Canva?

Canva is one of Australia's most successful startups. It has long been touted as a candidate for a blockbuster listing on Nasdaq, a float that would rank among the largest by an Australian-founded company.

A restructure of this scale, touching staff who helped build the platform, marks a sharp turn for a business known for its growth story. The severance package and relocation support suggest the company wants to manage the exit carefully as it consolidates teams into hubs.

The open question is whether the trimming positions Canva for its long-rumoured listing, or whether the absence of any AI rationale signals that the pressure Perkins described runs deeper than the industry's current wave of AI-driven resets.