Canva expands AI push with Simtheory and Ortto acquisitions

Canva has announced the acquisition of two startups — Simtheory and Ortto — as it ramps up investment in artificial intelligence (AI) and marketing infrastructure.

Financial terms of the deals were not disclosed, but Canva said the acquisitions are central to its strategy of evolving from a design-focused platform into a comprehensive, AI-powered workspace for teams.

Both Simtheory and Ortto were founded by brothers Chris Sharkey and Mike Sharkey, who previously co-founded Stayz. 

The founders will join Canva in leadership roles spanning its AI and marketing technology divisions.

Simtheory brings expertise in agentic AI — systems that can autonomously perform tasks — enabling teams to build AI assistants that understand business workflows, operate across tools and execute real-world tasks. 

The platform supports flexible deployment of advanced models and customised AI-driven workflows.

Meanwhile, Ortto adds a robust customer data and marketing automation layer, allowing businesses to design and manage campaigns across channels including email, SMS, push notifications and in-app messaging. 

Its event-driven architecture and no-code integrations are designed to help companies activate customer data in real time. Ortto currently serves more than 11,000 customers in 190 countries.

“Simtheory accelerates our evolution from a design platform with AI tools to an AI platform with design and productivity tools at its core,” said Canva co-founder and COO Cliff Obrecht. 

He added that Ortto strengthens Canva’s ability to manage the entire marketing and content lifecycle, from planning and creation to distribution and optimisation.

The acquisitions are the latest in a string of deals by Canva as it expands aggressively. 

In recent weeks, the company acquired digital out-of-home advertising startup Doohly, as well as animation platform Cavalry and ad performance startup MangoAI. Earlier in 2025, it also acquired marketing intelligence firm MagicBrief.

Canva ended 2025 with $4 billion in annualised revenue and more than 265 million users, including 31 million paid subscribers. 

The company also reported a 20% increase in monthly active users, underscoring its growing influence in the creative and marketing technology space.