Why the Adobe x Figma $20 billion deal doesn't really matter
A breakdown on why Adobe is spending so much money and why this acquisition doesn't really affect you.
To understand why the deal doesn’t matter as much, let’s first dive into why Adobe is even buying Figma. Adobe is spending a whopping $20B on Figma’s growth trajectory, its cult following, and the two amazing products it creates (Figma design tool and FigJam). Let’s dive deeper into each of these.
Figma’s growth trajectory
Figma generated only $190M in revenue in 2022. In comparison, Adobe made $15.78B in revenue in 2021.
They have about a 100% year-over-year growth rate with 50K paying customers. They were able to reach this on their own. Can you imagine what their growth would be with the capital, scale, and resources of Adobe? The sky’s the limit here and Adobe is well aware of Figma’s potential.
Figma’s cult following
Figma has generated buzz around its product since it first announced its real-time collaboration design tool. But once they had their first public launch, everything just worked. Designing in the browser with tens to hundreds of other designers felt like magic. Since these early days in 2016, they’ve been growing a cult following ever since. People were moving from Sketch/Invision/Adobe XD to Figma.
Remember this ⬇️ back in 2020 when COVID first hit?
This loyal following has enabled Figma to build a very strong community which is super valuable. It’s handy for gathering feedback quickly, building brand and marketing for ‘free’, and keeping their customers engaged.
Figma’s damn good products and team
If the Figma design tool wasn’t a good enough indicator of their talented team, then FigJam should be the selling point. It’s their collaborative, online white-boarding tool. These products are what drove people to Figma in the first place and it’s what’s retaining them as well.
These 3 reasons together make Figma a very attractive company to purchase for Adobe. It’s actually imperative they acquire them now vs later before Figma becomes a dominant giant in the design and creative industry.
Now that we understand why Adobe is acquiring Figma, let’s go into why it doesn’t matter as much. ⬇️
Why the Adobe x Figma deal doesn’t matter
This was one of the most controversial topics to date in the design industry. Designers were scared that Adobe would ruin Figma and increase the prices. But actually, if you look at Adobe’s past actions, this won’t be the case.
Adobe x Frame.io deal
Adobe acquired the video collaboration software Frame.io for $1.28B in 2021. Since then, Adobe has allowed Frame.io to act on its own—maintaining its product vision (that predates the acquisition) and independence.
Check out what Frame.io’s VP of Design had to say:
This is a really good signal for the future of the Figma acquisition. Adobe will most likely do the same for Figma—give them full autonomy while providing them the scale and resources necessary to act on their product vision.
Just look at Frame.io’s recent rebrand. They were able to execute this without the interference of Adobe.
Dylan Field’s (Figma CEO) reassurance
Field says that “creativity is the new productivity”. I agree. He mentioned in a Twitter Space that with this deal, it was critical that they maintain full autonomy to act on their vision. He really cares about his company, products, and community. Just reading and listening to his many interviews following the purchase announcement gives me reassurance that he won’t let anything bad happen to Figma. If anything, they would extend their offerings, maintaining their mission to empower creativity in everyone.
Final takeaways
So, nothing will change. Figma, the company we love, will stay Figma, the company we love. If anything, their products will get better—like incorporating Adobe Fonts into their platform.