Skip to main content
UnicornBurnBETA
AutopsiesRankingsIntelligenceAPI
// sign inStart free →
AutopsiesRankingsIntelligenceAPIRequest access →
// FAILURE INTELLIGENCERankingsAPI
B2B ACCESS →
← All autopsies
// HALL OF FLAME · STARTUP AUTOPSY
Founded2012
Closed2013
CountryAustralia
SectorSaaS
Total raised$3M (seed)
FounderMelanie Perkins

Canva (early near-death)

"The graphic design unicorn almost died at seed stage. 100 investor rejections."

—
RAISED
—
EMPLOYEES
12
MONTHS
runway zero
🔥 Hall of Flame 5%🏆 Hall of Fame 95%

Canva, now one of the world's most valuable SaaS companies at $40B, nearly shut down in 2013 after Melanie Perkins received over 100 investor rejections.

// full analysis

Full analysis requires the Analyst plan

Documented cause · Market cycle · Competitive moat type · Verified lesson

See Analyst plan →See all plans

€149/mo · or contribute your autopsy for free access →

More SaaS →More from Australia →More runway zero failures →Raised: $3M (seed)
// SHARE THIS AUTOPSY
SHARE ON X →LINKEDIN →
← Report an error in this autopsy
// YOUR STARTUP DOESN'T HAVE TO END LIKE THIS

UnicornBurn Season 0 opens July 2026. 10,000 founders competing in one world. Your startup fights for the market every Saturday. Most will end up here. Which one are you?

JOIN SEASON 0 →
// THE SAAS GRAVEYARD DOESN'T END HERE

Canva (early near-death) followed a documented pattern. Identify the same signals in any company before they reach the point of no return.

ANALYSE A COMPANY →MORE SAAS AUTOPSIES →
←PREVIOUSAfterpay (Block acquisition)NEXT99designs→

// SIMILAR STARTUP FAILURES

↔ Compare with another startup →
Loot
Fintech
Carillion
SaaS
Scytl
SaaS
Coverfy
Fintech
// SUBMIT AN AUTOPSY

Witnessed a startup failure first-hand? Share the real story. First-hand accounts from founders and team members get prioritized for publication.

SUBMIT AN AUTOPSY →
✎ Claim this autopsy⚑ Report an error
// FOR FUNDS & ANALYSTS

Failure intelligence for due diligence and risk analysis.

Structured dataset by collapse type, for 5031 startups. 7-day trial.

See plans →
// FOR BUILDERS

Free JSON API. No key required. 50 autopsies, 10 req/day.

Full dataset available with Intelligence plan API key. CORS enabled.

Explore API →

Academic, press, or research use? Free JSON API available — no auth required →

¿Te ha sido útil?