Company Overview
InVision was founded in 2011 by Clark Valberg, Ben Nadel, and Val Head, headquartered in New York City. InVision was an early pioneer in the design prototyping space, being one of the first to bring cloud-based design collaboration to market. At its peak in 2017, InVision was valued at $2 billion, making it one of the most valuable design tool startups. However, with the rapid rise of Figma and next-generation browser-based design tools, InVision's market share declined sharply. In 2024, InVision sold Freehand (its digital whiteboard product) to Miro, effectively ceasing independent operations for its core prototyping business.
Product Matrix
- InVision Studio: Comprehensive design and prototyping tool supporting vector editing, animation, interactive prototypes, and responsive layout—once positioned as a competitor to Sketch and Figma
- InVision DSM (Design System Manager): Enterprise design system management platform for maintaining design specs and component libraries across projects, with Sketch integration
- InVision Cloud: Cloud-based design collaboration platform supporting design upload, online review, version management, and developer handoff
- Freehand: Digital whiteboard for brainstorming, flowcharts, agile planning, and remote team collaboration. Acquired by Miro in 2024
- InVision Prototyping: Core online prototyping feature supporting click interactions, screen transitions, and gesture navigation
- InVision Inspect: Design spec and developer handoff module for inspecting dimensions, colors, typography, and CSS properties
Historical Strengths
Cloud Collaboration Pioneer: One of the first products to bring design prototyping to the cloud with online review and feedback
DLS and DSM: Early enterprise-grade design system management through Design System Manager
Freehand Whiteboard: Gained significant traction during the remote work surge
Plugin Ecosystem: Deep integration with Sketch and Photoshop was essential to many design workflows
Key Milestones
- 2011: Founded in New York City by Clark Valberg, Ben Nadel, and Val Head
- 2014: Raised $45M in funding, entering a period of rapid growth
- 2015: Launched InVision Studio as a competitor to Sketch and Adobe XD
- 2017: Reached $2B valuation, becoming one of the most valuable design tool unicorns
- 2018: Launched Design System Manager (DSM), expanding into the design systems space
- 2019: Released Freehand whiteboard, entering the online collaboration market
- 2020: Freehand user base surged during the pandemic, but core prototyping business faced pressure from Figma
- 2023: Large-scale layoffs and gradual reduction of core business operations
- 2024: Sold Freehand to Miro; effectively exited independent operations
Market Position
InVision was once the leader in design prototyping but faced significant competitive pressure:
- Figma: Browser-native collaborative design tool that reshaped the design tool landscape with real-time collaboration and community ecosystem
- Sketch: Mac-native UI design tool, once a key InVision partner, later developed its own prototyping features
- Adobe XD: Adobe's design prototyping tool, discontinued after the failed Figma acquisition
- Axure RP: Professional prototyping and interaction logic tool for complex prototype scenarios
- Marvel: Lightweight design prototyping and user testing tool