Recently, Canva announced the acquisition of Leonardo.ai, a startup specializing in generative AI art content and research, further increasing its investment in AI technology. The specific amount of the transaction was not disclosed, but Cameron Adams, co-founder and Chief Product Officer of Canva, stated that the acquisition was a combination of cash and stock. Notably, all 120 employees of Leonardo.ai, including its executive team, will join Canva.
Adams said in an interview that Leonardo.ai will continue to operate independently, focusing on rapid innovation and research and development, using Canva's resources to advance these goals. He also emphasized that all existing tools and solutions from Leonardo.ai will continue to be provided. The aim of this acquisition is to help Leonardo.ai develop its platform and promote user growth through Canva's investment, including expanding its API business and increasing investment in foundational model research.
Founded in 2022, Leonardo.ai initially focused on creating video game assets. As the team continued to explore, they decided to expand the platform's capabilities to meet broader needs, such as creating and training AI models for the fashion, advertising, and architecture industries. Currently, Leonardo.ai not only offers collaborative tools and private cloud services for models but also allows customers to build their own technical infrastructure based on its platform.
What sets Leonardo.ai apart from other generative AI art platforms is the higher level of control users can enjoy. The "real-time canvas" feature of Leonardo.ai allows users to input text prompts and then quickly sketch, with the AI generating realistic images in real-time based on the text and sketch.
Canva has always supported creators in adopting generative AI and has committed to investing $200 million over the next few years to pay creators who agree to use their content for AI model training. Currently, Leonardo.ai has over 19 million registered users and has created over 1 billion images.
Adams stated that Leonardo.ai will contribute to Canva's Magic Studio generative AI suite. They plan to integrate Leonardo's technology into Magic Studio, which may enhance the capabilities of existing tools or introduce new generative AI features directly within Canva.
Canva began investing in the development of generative AI tools in December 2022 and has significantly accelerated its development over the past few months through internal projects and acquisitions. Leonardo.ai is Canva's eighth acquisition and the second this year, following the recent acquisition of British design company Affinity for approximately $380 million.
Key Points:
📈 Canva has acquired generative AI startup Leonardo.ai to increase its investment in AI technology.
💡 Leonardo.ai will continue to operate independently and work with Canva to advance technological innovation.
🌍 Canva plans to integrate Leonardo's technology into its Magic Studio generative AI suite to enrich user experience.