Canva gets to $4B in revenue as LLM referral traffic rises

Canva, the innovative design platform, concluded 2025 with remarkable success, boasting a 20% rise in monthly active users, largely fueled by the growing use of its AI functionalities. The company reported over 265 million monthly active users and more than 31 million paid subscribers for the year, according to co-founder and COO Cliff Obrecht, who shared insights with TechCrunch during the Web Summit in Qatar. This impressive user growth has significantly impacted Canva's financial performance, propelling its annual recurring revenue to a staggering $4 billion. The subscription-based model has also seen its B2B segment flourish, doubling its revenue to $500 million for businesses with over 25 employees. While North America remains the primary market for Canva, the company is actively expanding its reach into international territories. To attract more paying users, Canva has rolled out more affordable subscription options in countries such as Pakistan, Uruguay, Morocco, and Jamaica. Obrecht revealed that the company's investments in AI are yielding positive results, highlighting a recent tool that enables users to create mini apps and websites through AI. This feature alone has surpassed 10 million monthly active users, prompting Canva to rethink its approach by positioning itself as a “design agency in your pocket.” As competition intensifies from Adobe, Freepik, and Apple, which has bundled its creative applications into a $12.99 per month Creator Studio, Canva is pivoting its strategy. Obrecht explained that while the company initially focused on enhancing its platform with AI tools, it is now transitioning to becoming an AI-centric platform equipped with design capabilities. Canva is also integrating its services with popular chatbots such as ChatGPT and Claude. By October 2025, users had engaged in over 26 million conversations with the Canva app through ChatGPT, making it one of the top ten domains referred by the AI. Obrecht mentioned that the company is directing resources toward enhancing Canva's visibility in large language model (LLM) search results and improving its search engine optimization. The company's growth trajectory remains promising, with a last valuation of $42 billion. Obrecht hinted at plans for a public offering in the near future, potentially within the next couple of years.