New technology is friend not foe to Hollywood’s creative community. That was the message delivered Thursday morning by Disney CEO Bob Iger during his keynote conversation at the Canva Create showcase event held at SoFi Stadium and Hollywood Park. Iger, who is an investor and board member of the privately held online design platform, commended Canva for embracing the potential of generative AI tools and other cutting-edge technologies to make high-end visual media design tools readily available to everyday users.
Based in Sydney, Australia, Canva has emerged over the past decade as a digital media star. The company was valued at $40 billion in 2022 when Iger took an undisclosed stake. That transaction came during his two and a half year retirement from Disney that ended with his return as CEO November 2022.
Canva Create is a mix of a festival to showcase new additions to the Canva platform and a conference probing creativity and other topics. Thursday’s event drew about 3,500 Canva enthusiasts and marked the first time Canva has held such a gathering in the U.S.
Iger took the stage at YouTube Theater with Canva co-founder Melanie Perkins to discuss brand-building, maintaining a strong company culture and scaling operations. He drilled down on Canva’s strength at building intuitive technology and design tools. Pressed by Perkins, Iger reflected on the significant role that new technologies have played in propelling the Walt Disney Co.
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