A wave of acquisitions across the Australian startup ecosystem, fuelled in part by those fending off the SaaSpocalypse, is delivering early returns for VCs, who say the deals reflect a market working exactly as it should.
But questions linger about the long-term potential being lost as startups are absorbed remarkably early.
Canva has been the most active acquirer. In the past two years, the $66 billion design company has bought Leonardo.ai for an estimated $320 million and MagicBrief for $22.5 million, while also acquiring Affinity, Cavalry, MangoAI and, most recently Doohly, a Melbourne-based out-of-home startup that raised just under $2 million before selling for $30 million.
Each deal has extended Canva’s reach along the marketing workflow, from content creation and performance analytics to real-world screen delivery.
