Startup · $2m raised
Sydney, NSW
Every investor coverage indicates participated in a round MagicBrief raised.
| Investor | Rounds | Invested |
|---|---|---|
| Alex Badran | Pre-seed | - |
| Archangel Ventures | Pre-seed | - |
| Blackbird Ventures | Pre-seed | - |
| Craig Piggot | Pre-seed | - |
| Dan Nolan | Pre-seed | - |
| George Howes | Pre-seed | - |
| Matt Miller | Pre-seed | - |
| Tim Doyle | Pre-seed | - |
| Zach Klein | Pre-seed | - |
The transaction that ended MagicBrief's run as a startup, per published coverage. It closes the funding history too, where it is the ladder's last rung.
Companies MagicBrief acquired or merged with, per published coverage. Buying a company is not investing in one: nothing here counts in the deals column.
| Name | Role | Sources |
|---|---|---|
| Alisa Wu | Founding Engineer (former) | Women's Agenda, Startup Daily (10 Oct 2025), Startup Daily (10 Oct 2025), SmartCompany |
| Dan Nolan | Co-founder and CTO | Startup Daily (18 Jun 2025), SmartCompany, Startup Daily (6 Jul 2023) |
| George Howes | Co-founder and CEO | SmartCompany (24 Feb 2026), Startup Daily (18 Jun 2025), Forbes Australia, SmartCompany (18 Jun 2025), SmartCompany (7 Jul 2023), Startup Daily (6 Jul 2023) |
Stories naming MagicBrief. Where several outlets covered the same round, they are bundled under whichever ran the fullest account.
Side Stage Ventures has reached a $40 million initial close on its $50 million second fund, backed by founders of earlier wins, while principal Elli Hanson steps up to partner.
Canva has bought AI agent platform Simtheory and marketing software Ortto from the Sharkey brothers, who also founded Stayz — its fourth and fifth purchases this year, prices undisclosed.
Canva has bought Sydney AI startup Simtheory and marketing automation firm Ortto, its fifth and sixth acquisitions in ten months, as it repositions from design tool to AI workplace platform; no prices disclosed.
Also Startup Daily·Startup Daily·This Week in Australian Startups
Design company Canva has bought US marketing AI startup Mango.AI and UK animation platform Cavalry, its fifth acquisition in two years, adding their founders and a chief algorithms officer to its team.
Also Startup Daily·Startup Daily·SmartCompany·SmartCompany·Startup Daily·Startup Daily
Roundup of six Australian and New Zealand funding rounds, headlined by Heidi Health and Octopus Deploy, also covering Nexl, OpenSolar, Lucent and PAM, with past acquisitions of Stella AI, MagicBrief and Codefresh noted.
Canva has bought Sydney marketing-analytics startup MagicBrief. Terms undisclosed. The deal follows the startup's 2023 pre-seed raise led by Blackbird and Archangel Ventures.
Also Startup Daily·SmartCompany·SmartCompany·Startup Daily·Startup Daily·Startup Daily·Startup Daily·Startup Daily·Startup Daily·SmartCompany·SmartCompany·Startup Daily·Startup Daily·Startup Daily·Women's Agenda·TechCrunch Australia
Weekly roundup detailing nine Australian startup funding rounds totalling $107.35 million, spanning pet e-commerce, quantum sensors, proptech, agtech, EV charging, sailing apparel, marketing tools, consumer goods and pregnancy wearables.
Also Startup Daily·Australian FinTech·SmartCompany·AgFunderNews
Blackbird led a $2 million pre-seed raise for MagicBrief, a Sydney martech startup building an advertising creative workflow platform, with Archangel Ventures and several founder-angels also taking part.