Good morning! AOC wants to ban Congress’s “insider trading,” Meta whistleblower testifies, and Canva’s latest tool would have benefitted its founder.
– Learn to code. When Melanie Perkins cofounded Canva over a decade ago, she didn’t have a technical background. What she had was an idea—a vision for graphic design to be easier for people who weren’t literate in Photoshop, and an understanding that with the rise of social media, communication was becoming more visual.
Her lack of a technical pedigree was a factor in more than 100 VCs’ decisions to pass as Perkins and cofounder (and now husband) Cliff Obrecht sought backing for their business. Sydney-based Canva is now the highest-valued female-founded and -led startup in the world and did $3 billion in annual revenue last year. And its latest product launch could make things a lot easier for the next founder who has a vision, but lacks technical experience.
Canva yesterday announced the debut of Canva Code, a generative AI coding platform that can prototype apps and other products. Users can enter prompts like “build an interactive map of travel destinations” and be presented with the code to add that widget to a project. Perkins tells me she’s been using it to build apps for people’s birthdays—plus quizzes, tutorials, and games.
And while AI-powered coding doesn’t teach people to code, she hopes it plays a role in making coding less intimidating and more accessible—as has been the goal of organizations like Girls Who Code. “It’ll be their entrée into coding, because all of a sudden you can see code that’s generated and go in and edit it. It just starts to unlock people thinking in the land of code,” she says.
Perkins says that “so much” would have been different in the early days of Canva if she had this tool at the time. Now, she’s even close to trusting it to build small features for Canva. “It’s really great at designing single-purpose ideas,” she says. “It completely changed our workflow…I had an idea on the way home the other day, and I was able to turn into a prototype and then get it user-tested within an hour, which is just completely crazy.”
That’s the reality of the AI era; just before this product rollout, Canva laid off 10 of 12 technical writers, according to the Australian Financial Review. “Every single person is going to have to be upskilling into this new era,” Perkins acknowledges.
In addition to its coding tool, Canva unveiled Canva Sheets, a Google Sheets competitor. Canva’s version incorporates its visual elements and AI studio, allowing users to generate and resize images by the thousands in a spreadsheet.
Perkins says that 230 million people and 95% of the Fortune 500 are now using Canva—and that Canva’s own IPO is still “on the horizon” but there’s “no news” to report.
Every time Canva announces a new suite of products, it calls it its biggest launch yet. Its recent launches have centered around becoming essential enterprise products worth paying for and incorporating AI. It’s taking the next step here, with a wider remit than just competing with Microsoft and Adobe.
Emma Hinchliffe
emma.hinchliffe@fortune.com
The Most Powerful Women Daily newsletter is Fortune’s daily briefing for and about the women leading the business world. Today’s edition was curated by Nina Ajemian. Subscribe here.
ALSO IN THE HEADLINES
- Market manipulation? Rep. Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez (D-N.Y.) is calling for an end to “insider trading in Congress” following allegations that Trump administration allies could have profited from the stock market soar after the tariff pause. Sen. Elizabeth Warren (D-Mass.) called for an official investigation: “Americans need to know whether President Trump or anyone in his administration manipulated the market to benefit their donors.” Fortune
- More on Meta. Sarah Wynn-Williams, the Meta whistleblower and Careless People author, told Congress in her hearing that Meta had a close working relationship with China and that Facebook built censorship tools for the Chinese Communist Party, allegations that Meta denied. She also alleged that the company’s ads targeted teenagers based on their emotional states; Meta denied these claims as well. TechCrunch
- No more nomination. Kathleen Sgamma withdrew her nomination to head the Interior Department’s Bureau of Land Management ahead of her confirmation hearing. While Sgamma did not provide specific reasoning, her decision follows the release of a letter she wrote in 2021 saying she was “disgusted” by the Jan. 6 attack and “President Trump’s role in spreading misinformation that incited it.” Washington Post
- Thinking big. Mira Murati is reportedly raising $2 billion for Thinking Machines Lab, double the venture’s initial funding goal—and potentially the largest seed round ever. Business Insider
MOVERS AND SHAKERS
Prolerity Clinical Research, a network of clinical research sites, named Stacey Johnson COO. She most recently served as VP of clinical operations at WCG.
Hewlett Packard Enterprise named Stacy Dillow EVP and chief people officer. Most recently, she was EVP and CHRO at Fluor.
Aviation services company AAR named Sharon Purnell SVP and CHRO. Most recently, she was CHRO at Stepan Company.
LexisNexis Risk Solutions, a data and analytics provider, appointed Valentina Isakina as EVP and chief strategy officer. She was previously managing director, financial services and fintech at JobsOhio.
Lightfully Behavioral Health, which provides mental health care, appointed Erica Strope as chief people officer. She previously served as the company’s SVP of people operations.
ON MY RADAR
Will Elise Stefanik get the last laugh? The Atlantic
Shaking up Silicon Valley Business Insider
A’ja Wilson knows she’s that girl Cosmopolitan
PARTING WORDS
“I feel if I spend less time on the internet, I know more about myself.”
— Singer Clairo on being chronically online
