[codeptualize]

It's a smart approach imo. They had to get a subscription somehow to support AI features which they need to compete (just usage cost wise you can't do that on a one time fee license).

But since they promised not to go subscription when they got acquired by Canva, making it free with AI as the subscription is a clever solution to not break their promise while still introducing a subscription model.

I think their bet is enough people will want the AI, which I think is correct.

As a long time Affinity user, first reaction was: "see, there is the subscription", but on second thought, fair enough, well played. I'll probably get the AI subscription as well.

I do wonder if over time more features will go into that premium plan, but we'll see.

Edit: It seems like some of the AI stuff runs on device, they are not very clear about what does or doesn't. That makes me change my opinion a bit, as that's just straight up a freemium subscription model.

[tensor]

I think there are a lot of people like me who use it occasionally and won't bother with AI nor a subscription. To me this is a bad sign, as free is unsustainable. It's only a matter of time before they look at their metrics and realize "oh look, we have all these casual users who only use the free stuff, that's a new source of revenue!" at which point either the subscription now covers the app, or worse, they steal your shit for "AI training."

Hell, has anyone looked at the EULA for this "free" product? Maybe it's already doing that.

[sbarre]

> Free is unsustainable

This is not necessarily true when the free product is a sales funnel.

Canva's business model is not "desktop design application" but giving away these tools creates goodwill in the design community and gives them exposure and a lower-friction conversion funnel towards their actual paid products.

Since they're desktop apps, there's very little cost to them for the free users who never convert (unlike Figma or other cloud-based products that have operational/bandwidth costs for all users).

[exasperaited]

Is Da Vinci Resolve's free version unsustainable?

No. Because it's part of the cost for Black Magic Design that if they want to have their own hardware and not have the industry's monopolists (Adobe and Apple) make it difficult to maximise their sales, they need to control their own app.

This is what Canva think about their asset marketplace and AI tools, I guess. They need their own app to make sure Adobe can never so much as tug at the corner of the rug.

[alwillis]

> free is unsustainable

Canva makes $3+ billion (up from $1.5 in 2023) per year; they have 21 million paying customers out of 240 million users. "Only" 8.75% are paying customers.

They don't need huge uptake in AI subscriptions from Affinity.

So yeah, free is sustainable for the foreseeable future.

[seemaze]

It looks like it is an offline application (after license verification) in he FAQ

>You will need to be online to download and activate your license with your free Canva account. From then on, there is no requirement to be online, even with extended offline periods.

As a long time Adobe "user" (read: hater) I'm curious if this decision targets Adobe or Microsoft options more..? Maybe both.

[crazygringo]

Free is not unsustainable if there is a paid tier.

For people like you who only use it occasionally, you're not the kind of person who's going to pay in the first place.

It's sustainable if the professionals people who use it daily/weekly find it's worth it to pay for the AI tools. And if you're a professional, you'll likely be needing those AI tools to keep up.

[dannyw]

Thank you (long-time Affinity user and fan, and Canva employee here :)

Re. on-device AI features: these still have significant training costs; and Canva as a whole has paid hundreds of millions to date in royalties to creatives, including for AI training.

Affinity is free, forever; but not open source; if that makes sense.

[candiddevmike]

> Affinity is free, forever; but not open source; if that makes sense.

It's free until you guys stop supporting it or go out of business, then it disappears.

[jay_kyburz]

It's not free, it's a lure. There is a hook hiding somewhere.

The real cost of tools like these is not the upfront price, but the time invested learning the tool and incorporating it into your workflow.

Krita is clunky, but good enough for me, and it really is free.

Update: Changed my analogy to lure.

[prox]

I am sorry, but for me the app just died. That may sound dramatic but the promise at acquisition was that nothing would change. The picture that was drawn is that we would get a v3. Sure I would suspect some canva integration, but again, not a whole redo and relaunch that seems at first glance nothing like what we had, and completely taken over into the Canva system.

Also free is never free.

[bryanhogan]

This really hurts to see, everything for the whole month has shattered trust in a way that is hard to believe. Any chances we can see some reversals?

[bebna]

What changes for me as iPad user?

Does the account required mean I can’t use it offline anymore?

So can I finally import krita files? Especially those with vector layers?

[fortran77]

I have a free subscription to Adobe Creative Cloud (I was a long-time, early employee and negotiated this as a perk). One reason I paid for and use Affinity is that it DOESN'T have AI. I want to be completely sure the photos I edit don't go up to a "cloud" somewhere, etc.

[bigbuppo]

It's smart only if their business goal is to lose every single customer they had specifically because it wasn't subscription software and didn't have the AI junk that their customers specifically did not want.

[spiderice]

Yeah I'm not sure throwing away their single advantage (that's not hyperbole) over Adobe is a smart play

[JKCalhoun]

> They had to get a subscription somehow to support AI features which they need to compete

I assumed the jury was still out in that one.