Canva is acquiring two companies: an AI "agent management" platform and a "marketing automation" vendor, according to a report by The Verge.

The deal signals where Canva sees its next growth phase. The design software maker is pushing beyond its core visual editing tools toward AI-driven agents and automated marketing workflows — territory currently contested by Adobe, HubSpot and a wave of AI startups.

What do the acquisitions cover?

The two targets operate in adjacent layers of the marketing stack:

• An AI agent management platform — tooling for orchestrating and controlling AI agents that can carry out tasks on a user's behalf.
• A marketing automation company — software for scheduling, targeting and running marketing campaigns with limited manual input.

Neither purchase price nor expected closing date appeared in the initial report.

Why is Canva buying agent tooling?

The move follows a broader industry shift. Vendors across the software sector are bolting AI agents onto existing products, betting that customers will pay for software that executes work rather than just assists with it. Agent management — the plumbing that governs what agents do, what data they touch, and where humans approve their actions — has become a busy acquisition category.

For Canva, which built its business on template-driven design for non-professional users, agents offer a path deeper into customers' daily workflows. A marketing automation purchase points the same direction: from making assets to distributing them.

What comes next?

Canva has not yet detailed integration timelines, pricing, or whether either acquired product will survive as a standalone offering. Buyers of design and marketing software should watch for:

• Bundling of agent capabilities into Canva's subscription tiers.
• Any changes to the acquired products' standalone pricing.
• Overlap with Canva's existing Visual Suite and brand management features.

We will update this story as Canva discloses deal terms and product roadmaps.

Note: this item is based on early reporting; financial details were not yet public at press time.