Canva has officially established its regional headquarters in Dubai, marking a strategic expansion into one of the world’s fastest-growing digital and creative economies. The move follows an agreement with the Dubai Chamber of Digital Economy, signed at WGS 2026, and signals Canva’s intent to anchor itself deeper within the Middle East’s SME and creator ecosystem.Over the next five years, Canva aims to support 250,000 small and medium-sized businesses, reinforcing its positioning as an essential productivity and design platform for entrepreneurs, enterprises, and creators. The momentum is already visible over 54 million designs were created in the UAE in 2025 alone, highlighting the region’s rapid adoption of visual-first digital tools.Strategically, Dubai offers Canva more than geographic reach. It provides proximity to high-growth markets across MENA, South Asia, and Africa, backed by a business-friendly regulatory environment and strong AI-forward policy frameworks. For Canva, this creates a launchpad to localise products, deepen partnerships, and accelerate adoption across diverse industries from e-commerce and education to marketing and government.The expansion also aligns with a broader trend: global SaaS platforms are moving closer to regional users to deliver context-aware, AI-powered creative tools. With governments and businesses across the Middle East investing heavily in digitisation, Canva’s presence positions it as a long-term enabler of scalable creativity and economic participation.
Overall, the Dubai headquarters signals Canva’s transition from a global design tool to a regionally embedded digital infrastructure player, powering the next wave of SME growth and creator-led innovation.
