Canva Cuts 1271 Jobs In Major Restructure But Wins Wide Praise For Offering Six Months Salary Free MacBooks And Startup Grants
Global visual design platform Canva has announced a major workforce reduction affecting 1271 employees, representing approximately twenty-two percent of its global staff across thirty-seven countries. The Australian tech powerhouse confirmed the decision as part of a deep restructuring effort designed to simplify decision making, collapse management layers, and adapt to the rapid rise of generative artificial intelligence in the creative sector. In an emotional message sent to employees, chief executive officer Melanie Perkins described the current period as the hardest year yet in the thirteen year history of the company. However, the company has drawn global praise across the technology sector for its generous and humane exit package, which stands in sharp contrast to the abrupt dismissals seen at other major technology firms in recent years.
The severance support package outlined for departing team members offers at least six months of salary regardless of location or tenure, including statutory benefits. In addition, affected workers will receive twelve months of continued health insurance coverage in countries where company healthcare is provided, alongside full family access to internal assistance programs. To ensure a smooth professional transition, departing staff will be permitted to keep their company issued Apple MacBook laptops, receive a complimentary one-year LinkedIn Premium subscription, and gain access to dedicated career coaching and interview preparation. The company is also creating an opt-in talent directory that will be shared directly with partner organizations, venture investors, and technology recruiters worldwide to assist staff in finding new employment.
In another unusual measure for a corporate layoff, Canva is establishing the Canva Collective Fund to support entrepreneurship among departing workers. Eligible former employees who wish to launch their own businesses, build creative ventures, or fund community initiatives can apply for non-equity grants of ten thousand dollars. The company emphasized that it will take no commercial interest, equity stake, or intellectual property ownership in any project launched through these grants. Staff members have also been given continued access to corporate email and messaging channels until the end of the week, allowing them time to say farewell to colleagues and manage their personal departure announcements with dignity.
The job cuts follow an era of intense market disruption and cooling financial expansion. For the first time in ten years, annual revenue growth at the design platform slowed down, forcing leadership to reconsider its global operational structure. The creative software landscape has shifted dramatically with the fast emergence of advanced artificial intelligence tools capable of generating graphics, videos, marketing presentations, and brand kits from simple text prompts. Although Canva has invested heavily in artificial intelligence features across its visual suite, pressure from institutional investors and private valuation adjustments led the company to conclude that minor budget adjustments would not be enough to safeguard its long-term market position.
Alongside the layoffs, the company is carrying out a fundamental overhaul of its internal hierarchy. Canva is merging its separate product, growth, and platform departments into a single unified product organization to eliminate bureaucratic handoffs and increase team autonomy. The company is also centralizing more of its core technical operations in its primary headquarters in Sydney, which will require certain global staff to consider relocation to regional hubs. Furthermore, starting in January, employees working on hybrid schedules will be expected to work from physical office locations two to three days each week, marking a shift away from earlier fully flexible remote work policies.
Industry analysts and human resource specialists have highlighted Canva handling of the downsizing as a model for ethical leadership in the volatile technology industry. In recent years, thousands of tech professionals across Silicon Valley and global tech hubs have faced sudden access cutoffs, minimal notice periods, and cold digital terminations. By pairing difficult business choices with extensive financial protection, healthcare extensions, hardware retention, and startup capital, Canva has set a new benchmark for corporate empathy during tough economic transitions.