Canva snaps up MangoAI and Cavalry to power AI and motion design push

LinkedIn post signals push into professional animation and algorithm-led marketing as Creative OS broadens.

MangoAI Co-Founders Nirmal Govind (left) and Vinith Misra (right) with Canva Co-Founder and COO Cliff Obrecht (center). Photo credit: Canva

Canva has acquired MangoAI and Cavalry, expanding its AI infrastructure and adding professional-grade motion design to its growing creative suite.

The announcement was highlighted in a LinkedIn post by Gonzalo Rosado Morgan, who described the move as “Huge news alert for Pro Designers, Creators and Enterprises,” adding that “We’re welcoming MangoAI and Cavalry to Canva. Together, we’re expanding our impact to support even more people, from first-time creators to the most advanced teams.”

The acquisitions build on Canva’s earlier integration of Affinity into its Creative OS, positioning the company more directly in competition with established professional design ecosystems.

Motion joins the Creative OS

In 2025, Canva introduced Affinity into its platform. According to the company, the tool has surpassed five million downloads since October.

With the addition of Cavalry, Canva now extends its capabilities into 2D animation and motion design. Rosado Morgan wrote: “Affinity + Canva signaled we’re serious about professional workflows. And now, animation joins the movement. It’s Motion time.”

Cavalry, based in the UK, has built a motion design tool used by professional designers. Canva says the addition closes what it described as a workflow gap between photo, layout, vector, and motion editing.

In its official statement, Canva said: “By bringing Cavalry alongside Affinity, we’re closing that gap and unlocking a complete professional suite spanning photo, vector, layout, and now motion editing.”

Strengthening AI and marketing intelligence

The acquisition of MangoAI focuses on algorithmic intelligence and performance-led marketing tools. MangoAI’s technology uses data intelligence and reinforcement learning to connect creative outputs with campaign performance and iterate based on results.

Canva said MangoAI strengthens its content marketing products and AI capabilities. The company added: “But the next frontier of AI isn’t just about speed. It’s about intelligent systems that learn from performance, understand context, and continuously improve content.”

As part of the deal, Nirmal Govind, former Vice President of Data Science & Engineering at Netflix, joins Canva as its first Chief Algorithms Officer. Vinith Misra joins Canva’s Research Lab as Reinforcement Learning Lead.

Canva reports that its AI tools have been used more than 24 billion times to generate presentations, transform documents, create videos, and scale content.

The dual acquisition signals a clear shift toward professional-grade workflows and enterprise marketing use cases. Rosado Morgan wrote: “Cavalry + Affinity + Canva brings us closer to a truly end-to-end creative platform - helping close the gap between powerful professional tools and accessible creativity.”

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