Australian design giant Canva has cracked the top 10 for the first time in the annual Forbes Cloud 100 list, which rank the world’s top private cloud companies.
Canva came in at no. 7, with Melbourne fintech Airwallex at 61 and employee experience platform Culture Amp at 80, as the three Australian cloud-based tech startups to make the cut.
Liz McKenzie, head of communications at Canva, said that as the only company in the Top 10 based outside the USA, that achievement was “a great sign of confidence in Australia’s tech ecosystem” and Canva’s impact across the globe.
The Cloud 100, now in its fifth year, recognises the standout cloud-based companies around the world from small startups to private-equity-backed giants.
2020’s new No. 1 is cloud-database venture Snowflake, rising from 2 last year. The company listed on the NSYE on Wednesday, backed by Salesforce and Warren Buffett’s Berkshire Hathaway, which normally avoids IPO investments.
Culture Amp CEO and co-founder Didier Elzinga
Culture Amp CEO and co-founder Didier Elzinga said being named in the Cloud 100 is a special moment.
“It is further validation of our culture first approach and the absolute importance of employee experience in building a great company,” he said.
Thank you to everyone of our over 400 employees and over 3,000 customers for helping us deliver on our mission of building a better world of work.”
Elzinga said that at this moment in time when company culture is more critical than ever.
“Where understanding what matters to your people to support engagement, productivity, well-being and ultimately uphold a workplace culture is what will allow companies to respond to what the world is throwing at them,” he said.
“This builds on our continued momentum, including being named on this year’s CB Insights 50 Future Unicorns list and hitting the recent milestone of 3,000 active customers.
Forbes produces the list in a partnership with Bessemer Venture Partners and Salesforce Ventures. The judging panel is made up of public cloud company CEOs.
Byron Deeter, a partner at Bessemer, said the private cloud ecosystem is maturing amid rapid digital transformation, making it more competitive to make the list.
“Private cloud valuations are getting bigger as the market’s appetite for cloud continues to grow. Over the past five years, the average Cloud 100 valuation has grown by a tremendous 2.5x, from US$1 billion in 2016 to US$2.7 billion in 2020,” he said.
“In fact, our 2020 Cloud 100 includes over 87 private cloud unicorns! These founders represent the absolute best in cloud computing today, and they will most certainly follow in the footsteps of our esteemed Cloud 100 alumni. More than a third of the companies of the Cloud 100 have exited either via strategic M&A, financial M&A or Initial Public Offering.”
The Forbes 2020 Cloud 100 and 20 Rising Stars lists are published online at www.forbes.com/cloud100 and will appear in the September 2020 issue of Forbes magazine.
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