The landscape of design software is undergoing a significant transformation, with collaborative web-based tools rapidly displacing traditional desktop applications. Art Levy recently highlighted this shift on social media, stating, "Figma dominating, Adobe shrinking." This trend is underscored by data from the latest Brex Benchmark report, which indicates a substantial decline in Adobe's adoption among emerging companies.
According to Levy, "Since 2019, 70% fewer new startups chose Adobe for design." This dramatic shift reflects a "generational reset in design workflows," favoring solutions that prioritize real-time collaboration and cloud accessibility. Figma, a web-first platform, has emerged as the dominant player, capturing a significant majority of the UI/UX design tool market, with some reports indicating its share as high as 77% to 90%.
Figma's success is largely attributed to its browser-based, collaborative features, which streamline workflows for modern product design and development teams. Its ecosystem, including FigJam for digital whiteboarding and Dev Mode for developer handoff, caters directly to the needs of agile startups. In contrast, Adobe's dedicated UI/UX tool, Adobe XD, is no longer actively developed as a standalone product, marking a strategic retreat from direct competition in this rapidly evolving segment.
The competitive dynamics between the two companies were starkly highlighted by Adobe's unsuccessful attempt to acquire Figma for approximately $20 billion. The deal, announced in 2022, was mutually terminated in late 2023 due to significant regulatory hurdles from the European Commission and the UK Competition and Markets Authority, resulting in Adobe paying Figma a $1 billion termination fee. This outcome cemented Figma's independent trajectory and its continued influence in the design space.
As Figma solidifies its position, Levy warns, "And with Figma’s high attach rate, Adobe could soon vanish from the startup stack." Adobe is now focusing its strategy on enhancing its broader Creative Cloud suite with generative AI capabilities, such as Firefly, and promoting its simpler content creation tool, Adobe Express. This pivot suggests Adobe is seeking growth in other areas of the creative market while the startup design ecosystem increasingly standardizes on Figma for its core design needs.