Gamma Acquires Accel-Backed Design Startup Lica
Presentation software company Gamma has acquired Lica, an Accel-backed design startup, to build a new design research lab, according to TechCrunch, which reported the deal exclusively. Lica co-founders Priyaa Kalyanaraman and Purvanshi Mehta will lead the new effort.
Lica launched in 2023 as a tool that converted screenshots and screen recordings into project presentations and videos. The company raised $4 million in 2024 from investors including Accel, South Park Commons and Village Global, and had more recently focused on helping e-commerce sites produce marketing videos that follow brand guidelines.
Kalyanaraman told TechCrunch that Lica wanted to build AI models focused on communication formats such as video and design, and that familiarity with Gamma chief executive Grant Lee, stemming from shared investors Accel and South Park Commons, led to acquisition talks. She said Gamma had built strong distribution, reaching more than 100 million users, while Lica had concentrated on frontier research.
Gamma will continue developing its core presentation product, which has already expanded into image generation, while using the new research division to explore other communication formats. Lee said the company wants to examine how presentations could look, feel and function differently in the future, and how people might interact with them.
Mehta said the research unit will work on customizing AI-generated presentation and communication styles for different audiences. Gamma has not disclosed specific products planned from the acquisition but said it intends to build more fluid, multimodal presentation tools.
The deal adds to a wave of investment and consolidation in AI presentation startups. TechCrunch noted that Prezent has raised $50 million across two rounds, Gamma itself raised $68 million at a $2.1 billion valuation, and Presentations.ai is also Accel-backed. Earlier this month, OpenAI acquired presentation startup NextSlide.
Based on reporting by techcrunch.com.
