Design platform Canva recently announced the dual acquisition of motion and animation software company Cavalry, alongside AI video generator company MangoAI. With the development of its AI and professional creative suite, Canva's latest acquisitions further expand its fast-evolving platform, making it a serious contender against the industry's best graphic design software.
While the acquisitions will undoubtedly create some shockwaves among creatives, they mark an uncertain but exciting shift in the world of motion design. With Cavalry's strong reputation among professionals, the Canva acquisition brings the hope of increased accessibility and automation, further challenging the future of top dog, Adobe.
In the past two years, Canva's been on somewhat of an acquisition rampage, taking over Affinity and Leonardo in 2024, followed by MagicBrief in 2025. The acquisition of Cavalry significantly expands Canva’s professional design suite, making 2D animation more intuitive and faster to produce while also eliminating the need for fragmented workflows across different software.
"With Cavalry joining Canva, we’re taking another big step toward helping professional designers break free from bloated and expensive tools, bringing everything from vector to motion design into one powerful creative suite," says Cliff Obrecht, co-founder and COO at Canva.
"We built Cavalry to give motion designers a faster, more flexible creative playground suitable for the demands of modern production. Canva’s platform and long-term vision make it a natural next chapter for our technology. Together, we have an incredible opportunity to redefine motion design, bringing smarter workflows that make animation more powerful and far more accessible to a new generation of creatives,” adds Cavalry's co-founder, Chris Hardcastle.
For Ben Drake, creative director and head of motion at Pennant Video, the news brought a sense of hope. “Adobe has been the unavoidable centre of the creative workflow for years. It’s refreshing to see that start to change," he says. "Canva’s clearly building out a full creative stack, and Cavalry adds something that’s been missing in most accessible tools – actual motion systems."
"As someone who relies on these tools (and has fully leaned into being a Cavalry nerd), what I have appreciated most is that Cavalry feels like a tool that’s built by people who actually understand motion design at a professional level. It’s thoughtful and efficient," Ben explains. "I’m hoping this accelerates development and makes it more accessible, without sanding off the edges that make it powerful in the first place,” he concludes.
For more Canva news, check out Canva's 2026 trend predictions or take a look at our Canva Pro review.
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