GoPro gets $20 million lifeline as sale pressure builds

GoPro’s financial position is worsening fast. According to the source report, founder Nicholas Woodman has extended the company a $20 million loan from his own money at an annual interest rate of 6.5%, as the action camera maker looks for a buyer.

The GoPro HERO was designed to compete with smaller rival cameras. Photo: Isabella Ruffatti.

The report says the loan is viewed as a stopgap rather than a full rescue, and that GoPro may not survive 2026 without either a new owner or a fresh cash injection. The pressure has been building for months. In May, GoPro said its first-quarter 2026 revenue had fallen 26% year over year, while camera unit sales dropped 29% to 313,000.

That same month, the company said it had hired a financial adviser to “review strategic alternatives,” a process Woodman said he strongly supports. The company has also begun restructuring, with plans to cut 23% of its global workforce by the end of 2026.

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GoPro has still been trying to expand beyond its core business. The source notes that the company recently unveiled a pro-grade action camera trio — the Mission 1, Pro and Pro ILS — and has also explored opportunities in aerospace and defence, two markets it says could be worth $ billions. Its cameras also helped capture imagery from NASA’s Artemis II mission this year.

But those moves have not eased the wider problems. GoPro is facing intense competition from Insta360 and recently lost a patent battle against the rival. Any buyer would also inherit GoPro’s existing debt burden, including repayment of Woodman’s loan and the interest attached to it. On the latest signs, a takeover may arrive before the company’s workforce cuts are complete.