Adobe vs Figma: Founders, CEOs and History
Adobe was founded in 1982 by John Warnock, Charles Geschke and is led by Shantanu Narayen. Figma was founded in 2012 by Dylan Field, Evan Wallace and is led by Dylan Field.
Company facts
Founders
Adobe
John Warnock
Warnock co-founded Adobe with Charles Geschke in 1982. He served as chief executive officer until 2000 and helped lead the development of PostScript and PDF. He died in 2023.
Charles Geschke
Geschke co-founded Adobe in 1982 and helped develop PostScript. He remained an Adobe director until 2020 and died on April 16, 2021.
Figma
Dylan Field
Dylan Field is the co-founder and Chief Executive Officer of Figma, Inc. In 2012, alongside Brown classmate Evan Wallace, Field founded Figma with the audacious vision of bringing professional graphics editing to the web browser.
Evan Wallace
Evan Wallace is the co-founder and former Chief Technology Officer of Figma. An engineering prodigy in computer graphics and compilers, Wallace was the primary technical architect who made Figma possible.
CEOs and their tenures
Adobe
- John Warnock1982–2000
Co-founder and Chief Executive Officer
Warnock co-founded Adobe and led it through the introduction of PostScript, Illustrator, Photoshop, Acrobat, and PDF.
Source - Bruce Chizen2000–2007
Chief Executive Officer
Chizen led Adobe when it completed the Macromedia acquisition in 2005.
Source - Shantanu Narayen2007–present
Chair and Chief Executive Officer
Narayen has served as CEO since December 2007 and led Adobe's expansion of subscription services, Digital Experience, and Firefly.
Source
Figma
- Praveer Melwani
Chief Financial Officer
Leads Figma's finance organization through its first years as a public company, including the 2026 introduction of AI credit monetization.
Source - Dylan Field2012–present
Chief Executive Officer & Co-Founder
Founding who dropped out of Brown on a Thiel Fellowship to build Figma; guided the company through a four-year stealth sprint, built Figma past US$1.06 billion in 2025 revenue, collected a US$1.0B breakup fee from Adobe, and took the company public on the NYSE…
Source - Evan Wallace2012–2021
Co-Founder
Evan Wallace co-founded Figma alongside Dylan Field. As the Chief Technology Officer, he developed the revolutionary core WebGL rendering engine and C++ architecture that enabled a complex design tool to run flawlessly and collaboratively in a standard web bro…
Source
Timeline: Adobe and Figma side by side
1982Adobe
Adobe founded
John Warnock and Charles Geschke founded Adobe after working together at Xerox.
1984Adobe
PostScript introduced
Adobe introduced PostScript, its first product and a foundation of desktop publishing.
1986Adobe
Adobe completes IPO
Adobe completed its initial public offering and its shares began trading on Nasdaq.
1987Adobe
Illustrator launched
Adobe introduced Illustrator for vector graphics.
1990Adobe
Photoshop 1.0 released
Adobe released the first version of Photoshop after licensing the software from Thomas and John Knoll.
1993Adobe
Acrobat and PDF introduced
Adobe introduced Acrobat and the Portable Document Format.
2000Adobe
Bruce Chizen becomes CEO
Bruce Chizen succeeded John Warnock as chief executive officer.
2005Adobe
Macromedia acquisition completed
Adobe completed its stock acquisition of Macromedia, adding products including Flash and Dreamweaver.
2007Adobe
Shantanu Narayen becomes CEO
Shantanu Narayen became Adobe's chief executive officer in December 2007.
2009Adobe
Omniture acquisition completed
Adobe acquired Omniture and expanded into web analytics and digital marketing software.
2012Figma
Figma Founded by Dylan Field and Evan Wallace
Dylan Field accepted the Thiel Fellowship, dropping out of Brown to start Figma with classmate Evan Wallace in San Francisco.
2013Adobe
Creative Cloud subscription shift
Adobe stopped developing new Creative Suite releases and focused future creative-software releases on Creative Cloud subscriptions.
2015Figma
Launch of Closed Preview & WebGL Canvas
Unveiled the first closed preview of Figma, astonishing engineers by rendering complex vector graphics inside a browser.
2016Figma
Public Launch of Figma to the World
Opened Figma to the public for free, igniting viral adoption across designers at Uber, Microsoft, and Airbnb.
2018Adobe
Marketo acquisition completed
Adobe completed its $4.75 billion acquisition of Marketo.
2019Figma
Series C Funding & Launch of Figma Community
Raised $40M led by Sequoia Capital and launched the Figma Community for open-source UI kits and plugins.
2021Adobe
Frame.io acquisition completed
Adobe completed its acquisition of Frame.io for approximately $1.275 billion.
2021Figma
Series E at $10.0B Valuation & FigJam Debut
Raised $200M led by Durable Capital at a $10B valuation and launched FigJam collaborative whiteboard.
2022Figma
Adobe Announces $20 Billion Acquisition Agreement
Adobe announced a definitive agreement to acquire Figma for $20B in cash and stock, setting a software M&A record.
2023Adobe
Firefly launched
Adobe introduced Firefly generative-AI models and began integrating them into its applications.
2023Adobe
Figma agreement terminated
Adobe and Figma mutually terminated their proposed merger after concluding there was no clear path to regulatory approval.
2023Figma
Launch of Dev Mode at Config San Francisco
Unveiled Dev Mode, expanding Figma's addressable market to software engineers with native code generation.
2023Figma
Merger Abandoned; Figma Collects $1.0B Breakup Fee
Adobe and Figma mutually terminated merger under regulatory pressure; Figma received a $1.0B cash termination fee.
2024Figma
$12.5B Valuation Tender Offer & Figma AI Launch
Completed tender offer valuing Figma at $12.5B, launched Figma AI, and crossed $700M in annual recurring revenue.
2025Adobe
Fiscal 2025 revenue reaches $23.769 billion
Adobe reported $23.769 billion in revenue and $7.130 billion in net income for fiscal 2025.
2025Figma
Revenue Tops US$1 Billion in First Public Year
Figma reported US$1.06 billion in 2025 revenue, up 41%, and ended the year with 1,886 employees.
2026Adobe
Anil Chakravarthy named next CEO
Adobe appointed Anil Chakravarthy to become president and CEO on December 1, 2026, with Shantanu Narayen becoming executive chair.
Acquisitions
Adobe
- Frame.io2021$1.3B
- Workfront2020$1.5B
- Magento Commerce2018$1.7B
- Marketo2018$4.8B
- Omniture2009$1.8B
- Macromedia2005$3.4B
Figma
- Bud (formerly Orchids) team2026Undisclosed
- Weavy2025Undisclosed
- Diagram2023Undisclosed
- Visly2021Undisclosed
Questions about Adobe vs Figma
Who is the CEO of Adobe Inc. and Figma, Inc.?
Adobe Inc. is led by Shantanu Narayen and Figma, Inc. is led by Dylan Field. Both serve as the top executive responsible for the company's strategy, operations, and financial performance.
When was Adobe Inc. founded vs Figma, Inc.?
Adobe Inc. was founded in 1982 — 30 years before Figma, Inc., which was founded in 2012. Adobe Inc.'s longer operating history gives it a deeper track record but also potentially more institutional inertia compared to the younger Figma, Inc..
How many employees does Adobe Inc. have compared to Figma, Inc.?
Adobe Inc. employs approximately 31,360 people, while Figma, Inc. employs approximately 1,886. Adobe Inc. has the larger workforce at 31,360 employees, compared to Figma, Inc.'s 1,886. A higher headcount does not necessarily imply greater efficiency — it often reflects differences in business model (e.g., manufacturing vs. software).
Where are Adobe Inc. and Figma, Inc. headquartered?
Both Adobe Inc. and Figma, Inc. are headquartered in United States, meaning they operate under the same primary regulatory and tax environment.
Who founded Adobe Inc. and Figma, Inc.?
Adobe Inc. was founded by John Warnock, Charles Geschke. Figma, Inc. was founded by Dylan Field, Evan Wallace.
Which company has a longer operating history — Adobe Inc. or Figma, Inc.?
Adobe Inc. has been operating for approximately 44 years, making it the more established of the two companies. Figma, Inc. has been in operation for around 14 years. A longer operating history often signals greater institutional resilience and brand recognition, though it can also mean slower adaptation to new market conditions.
Figures come from each company's filings and the sources linked beside them. Amounts reported in another currency are shown in US dollars at an approximate rate and marked with ~. Back to the Adobe vs Figma overview