Canva Create tech showcase shifted to US ahead of potential IPO

Australia’s $39bn tech darling is shifting its largest tech event to the US this year, in a bid to pick up more enterprise customers ahead of a potential IPO.

Canva co-founders Cameron Adams, Melanie Perkins and Cliff Obrecht at the opening of its Austin office in Texas last year.

Canva is shifting its biggest tech showcase from Australia to the US ahead of a much-hyped potential IPO.

The $39bn tech darling – which has been rocked by scandal in the past two weeks – said the US had grown to become one of its biggest markets.

It has been widely expected that Canva will follow the likes of Atlassian – Australia’s other tech darling – with a Nasdaq listing sometime in 2025 or 2026.

On May 23, the company will take what had been until now an Australian showcase to Los Angeles, putting its now rock star founders on the big stage at YouTube Theatre.

More than 50 speakers will address some 2000 attendees at the full-day festival, with co-founders Melanie Perkins and Cliff Obrecht to deliver the main address.

“A central keynote from our co-founders Melanie Perkins and Cliff Obrecht will reveal the biggest updates to Canva yet,” the company said.

Ms Perkin and Mr Obrecht will be expected to put on quite the show as Americans have become all too used to the extravagant performance US tech companies like to hold.

It’s not uncommon to spot a celebrity, hear a tech speech from a local mayor or even have founders get dressed up and perform as their favourite band.

Atlassian set the benchmark high at its annual Teams showcase, where co-founders Mike Cannon-Brookes and Scott Farquhar and company futurist Dom Price all donned Elvis costumes while performing for staff and partners.

Atlassian co-founders Mike Cannon-Brookes (left) and Scott Farquhar and company futurist Dom Price in Las Vegas.

Asked if the shift to the US was part of a plan to woo investors ahead of its IPO, a Canva spokeswoman said no, and that it was part of a plan to grow its enterprise customers.

“The United States is one of our largest and most important markets as we double down on our enterprise journey and continue building an all-in-one visual communication platform for the workplace,” she said.

“We’re looking forward to connecting with our US-based community and customers at the event. We don’t have any updates or news to share on an IPO.”

Canva would not be holding a public event in Australia at the same time but would hold a small event for local staff, she said.

Canva Create has drawn quite a crowd over the past three years, with as many as 1.5 million people tuning in virtually to the Sydney event last year.

The company has made it a name for itself by developing a cloud-based platform with easy-to-use design templates. In recent months they’ve become even easier to use for paying subscribers with the use of AI and text prompts.

Canva is often likened to the developer of Photoshop, Adobe, but seen as an simpler version, making it more attractive to businesses, schools and social media creators.

Canva Create’s debut in the US comes after the company opened an office in Austin, Texas, in June last year. Two weeks earlier it had opened a European office in London and a Melbourne office in March.

For the event, Ms Perkins, Mr Obrecht and co-founder Cameron Adams flew in and donned cowboy hats for a ribbon-cutting ceremony.

The Austin flagship office is about one sixth the size of the company’s upcoming Tech Central Campus at just 2,322sq m. It’s home to 105 employees, many of whom work on its enterprise products.

Canva is still yet to nail down a new chief financial officer, seeking a new finance boss who can help guide it to a potential IPO, on the back of the sooner-than-expected departure of Damien Singh. The former CFO suddenly resigned amid an investigation into “inappropriate behaviour” allegations raised on an external jobs platform.

Tickets to Canva Create are being sold for $US95 ($144) and will later increase to $US175.