We made a mistake with our API Challenge, and we’re sorry

Yesterday we launched a Figma -> Sketch export challenge. Our goal was to promote an open ecosystem around Figma and help fund the creation of different ways to get data out of our product.

Over the last 24 hours, we’ve heard loud and clear from the designer community that the challenge comes across as “spec work.”

At Figma, we believe strongly that creatives should be paid, and we understand the history of skilled workers being exploited. In this instance, we were swept away by our enthusiasm for making the design toolchain more open.

For this particular challenge, we are pressing pause. We’re considering various ways to pursue the goal of making Figma more open while not asking anyone to engage in work they might not get paid for. We plan to reboot the challenge with a different structure sometime in the next week or two.

Design community: thank you for your constructive advice and thoughtful feedback. We’re sorry and we look forward to working with you to make design more open and equitable.