As AI layoffs ravage tech, Cliff Obrecht explains what it takes to survive at Canva
At Blackbird’s Sunrise event the Canva COO said growth in headcount would slow to 5% from 50% in earlier years as he unveiled a new AI competency framework for staff.
Canva is Australia’s most successful startup. By Andreessen Horowitz’s latest count, it is also the third most-visited generative AI product on the web, behind only ChatGPT and Gemini.
At Blackbird’s Sunrise summit this week, co-founder and COO Cliff Obrecht laid out what it is taking to stay competitive.
Engineers inside Canva are now graded against a seven-level AI competency framework, Obrecht told Blackbird partner Rick Baker in front of a packed room on stage at Sunrise, running from basic code completion at level one to “running a team of agents autonomously 24/7” at the top.
The expectations attached to each specialty are being “ratcheted up” as the company progresses.
