Canva Unveils Major AI-Powered Update: Visual Suite 2.0 Challenges Tech Giants

Canva is getting AI image generation, interactive coding, spreadsheets and more | TechCrunch

Although there has been significant pushback from artists regarding the proliferation of AI design tools and the content used to train generative models, the companies making the software for creative work are nevertheless building AI into their toolkits. It's a signal of just how quickly AI has gained importance -- regardless of what their customers say, graphics design software makers clearly seem to think they cannot survive without implementing some form of AI. The latest to double down on that strategy is Canva. The company on Thursday said it is adding a suite of new AI features to its platform, including an AI assistant, the ability to create apps with prompts, support for spreadsheets, and AI-powered editing tools. Called Canva AI, the company's AI assistant can perform a host of tasks, from creating images according to your instructions, or coming up with design ideas -- say, collateral for social media or mock-ups for printing. It can even write copy and create documents. And by tapping into a new tool dubbed Canva Code, the assistant can also be prompted to create mini-apps, like interactive maps or custom calculators, that can then be integrated in designs. Canva has partnered with Anthropic for this feature, the Australian design company's co-founder and chief product officer Cameron Adams told TechCrunch. "Over the years, we have encouraged our teams to make interactive prototypes because static mockups don't truly represent the experience we are trying to create with Canva for users. We started seeing teams inside Canva use AI a lot for prototyping. We thought of externalizing it and giving everyone the ability to code easily and create interactive experiences," Adams said. To be clear, Canva is not the first to do this. Several startups such as Cursor, Blot.new, Lovable and Replit have attracted lots of customers and attention for enabling users to prompt their way to creating applications. Still, Canva has an incentive to bake such a feature into its software, as it complements its broader selling point as a service used to design everything from marketing collateral to website. Canva is also adding new AI features to its photo editor: one tool allows users to point and click to modify artifacts in photos, while another is a background generator that accounts for lighting and layout. This feature set seems aimed at helping the company compete with tools like Adobe Photoshop, Adobe Lightroom, and Pixelmator (acquired by Apple last year). Last year, Canva launched an enterprise-focused product to better serve larger teams with features like single sign-on and access management tools. Now, it's adding spreadsheets to the mix with Canva Sheets. Besides the usual spreadsheet features, Canva Sheets comes with a tool called Magic Insights, which, as it says on the tin, surfaces insights gleaned from data on the sheet. There's also a feature called Magic Charts, which converts raw numbers into charts automatically, complete with brand-specific graphics and logos. The company said Canva Sheets supports integrations with HubSpot, Statista, Google Analytics and more to let users import data easily. Companies like Adobe, Canva and Pixlr may be looking to add more value to their offerings, but the fact remains that bringing AI into design tools is causing some tension. Artists are worried not just about their work being used to train AI models without permission, there's also a real threat to creative design jobs. Still, Adams doesn't see this as a clash between AI and creativity; rather, he sees this as a moment of growth and opportunity in the field. "I think all our jobs will change as AI comes, as different tools are integrated across every specialty, whether it be design, product management, engineering, marketing or sales," he said. "I think each job is going to change and adapt to the help they will get from AI tools. We just see a massive opportunity," Adams said. Those changes, it seems, will be here sooner than most expect. Earlier this month, the company laid off some technical writing staff, nine months after its co-founders reportedly asked employees to use AI apps wherever they could. Adams, however, said that these layoffs were not related to AI tools the company is building, but were an effect of restructuring.

Canva's New AI Tools Want You to Embrace Your STEM Side

Katelyn is a writer with CNET covering social media, AI and online services. She graduated from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill with a degree in media and journalism. You can often find her with a novel and an iced coffee during her time off. Thinking of Canva only as a beginner-friendly graphic design program in 2025 would be a mistake. The Australian-based creative software company has become a staple for its more than 230 million monthly active creators in nearly every industry. Now, Canva is doubling down on generative AI and, in a surprising twist, embracing its STEM side. Canva is introducing a conversational Gen AI chatbot called Canva AI, the company announced at its annual creative conference on Thursday. You can chat with the AI to get design advice, start a project and create AI images with its Dream Lab and Magic Studio artificial intelligence tools. Canva is also introducing what it calls The Visual Suite 2.0, which lets you combine multiple templates/files -- such whiteboards, social media mock-ups and presentations -- all in one project file. Canva also is using AI to power two new features that are a big departure from its design-centric background. Now, you can use Canva's AI to help you write code. "We see coding as a real natural extension of this idea of making capabilities that used to be reserved for the few, available to everyone," Robert Kawalsky, head of product at Canva, said in an interview. "I think the key is bringing the same hallmark simplicity that we brought to design to this experience." In another first, Canva is also introducing a dedicated spreadsheet called Canva Sheets. Previously, if you wanted to import Excel or spreadsheet data, you needed to create a document and add a table. Now, you'll be able to manage and visualize data in Canva Sheets with more true data management tools. There also will be new AI insights in Canva Sheets that allow you to interact with your data. You can ask it questions and it will analyze your data to highlight findings. You can also ask the AI to write formulas for you, something that could be super helpful if you're not an Excel wizard. It wouldn't really be an AI product drop without some way to generate text. Canva Magic Write does just that, pulling from the web and third-party sources. Canva's AI policy automatically opts you out of training -- meaning Canva will not train on your content unless you decide to opt in. You own the AI-generated content you make. You can read the full privacy policy and AI terms of use for more information. Generative AI has increasingly crept into creative software like Canva. Last year, Canva raised its team prices, up to 300% in some cases, "to reflect the current price of the plan and the value of our expanded product experience," Canva told The Verge at the time. Kawalsky said there were no pricing updates in store for this batch of AI updates.

Canva just dropped 6 exciting AI features in its biggest update in years

Canva launched in 2012 and has become a widely used visual communication platform with over 230 million monthly active users. At its Canva Create annual conference, the company announced what it called its biggest product launch since its inception. Also: Adobe Photoshop is getting its first AI agent - here's what it can do for you On Thursday, Canva unveiled Visual Suite 2.0, which has new features that touch nearly every aspect of Canva's current design platform. Artificial intelligence (AI) is sprinkled throughout these features to speed up workflows and unlock new capabilities, including a new design companion, Canva AI. For the roundup, keep reading below. "From reimagined workplace essentials to entirely new ways to create with your own design partner, we're excited to continue making it easier than ever for anyone to bring their ideas to life," said Melanie Perkins, Canva's co-founder and CEO. If you have ever been tasked with creating a brand-new creative project from scratch, whether an invitation, a flyer, or a PowerPoint presentation, you know it's tough to get started. With Canva AI, users can now chat with the AI-powered creative partner to bring their vision to life. According to the company's post, the tool can generate text and slides and tweak elements of your projects, like resizing designs. The conversation can be carried out via text or voice. Adding animations and interactivity to visual projects often requires lots of backend coding. Canva Code allows users to get the same results from a conversational text prompt. This feature means users can now implement calculators, flashcards, or other interactive designs into their projects without coding knowledge. It can be challenging to display data engagingly. Magic Charts uses AI to let people make dynamic and on-brand visuals, such as scrollable reports and infographics. According to Canva, the feature bridges the gap between data and design. Canva Sheets, the company's take on spreadsheets, has been upgraded to be a more powerful data analysis and visualization tool. For example, the Magic Insights feature analyzes data to find key takeaways. Data Connectors allows users to import data from third-party hosts, such as HubSpot, Statista, and Google Analytics, into their Canva workspace to create visual projects. Also: The viral Samsung 'Ballie' robot is getting a Gemini AI upgrade - and it looks promising Another new feature, Magic Studio at Scale, is built directly into Canva Sheets. According to Canva, the feature allows users to transform spreadsheet data into different types of content, including marketing campaigns, sales outreach information, and internal communications, by auto-populating templates within seconds. The Canva Photo Editor, now part of the Visual Suite, has been upgraded to be more powerful. It can deliver professional-grade, AI-powered edits, including AI-generated backgrounds that consider the lighting of your photo, and object removal and point-and-click to select elements. Users can now create different projects, such as documents and presentations, in one place. This feature allows users to have a unified workspace rather than moving from one project to another. This capability can be helpful for marketers, keeping every step of a campaign, from ideation to delivery, in one place. Get the morning's top stories in your inbox each day with our Tech Today newsletter.

Software Firm Canva Bets on New Creative AI Offerings to Vie With Adobe

Design software provider Canva Inc. unveiled products to boost its generative artificial intelligence offerings, seeking to attract corporate customers away from rival Adobe Inc. as it heads toward an initial public offering. Australia-based Canva's new features include a conversation-based AI tool, which responds to voice and text prompts to edit photos, generate slide decks and resize designs. Its new tools, launched at a company event in Los Angeles on Thursday, can also generate code for app or website design based on simple prompts.

Canva isn't just for pretty posts anymore; it's coming for Google, Microsoft, and Adobe

Summary Canva has expanded beyond design with the launch of Visual Suite 2.0, introducing Canva Sheets and a generative AI coding assistant to compete with tools from Microsoft, Google, and Adobe. Canva Sheets combines data management with design, offering features like Magic Insights, Magic Charts, and Magic Formulas, while integrating with platforms like HubSpot and Google Analytics. The new Canva Code tool allows users to build custom interactive tools without coding knowledge, with the option to refine outputs or directly edit the generated code. Canva started as a simple drag-and-drop design tool and has been dominating the creative industry for over a decade. While the creative software has primarily been pitted against Adobe's Creative Suite tools, like Adobe Express, and has undoubtedly rolled out features that further closed the gap between the two, this latest update pushes the tool far beyond just design. Canva announced its latest redesigned AI-powered workspace tools, Visual Suite 2.0 at Canva Create 2025, expanding its territory and now attempting to take on Microsoft and Google as well. Related 5 hidden features in Canva for more creative control Canva has plenty of tools to give you more creative control over your projects Posts Canva can now code, analyze spreadsheets, and more Canva rolled out numerous office suite tools earlier in 2022, including Canva Docs and Canva Whiteboards. The company is now expanding its vision of breaking out of only design tools and has launched its take on Google Sheets and Microsoft Excel -- Canva Sheets. Of course, Canva isn't just going to build a spreadsheet tool without adding its creative Canva touch. The company describes it as "Data meets design on Canva Sheets." While you can input data within a Canva Sheet itself like other spreadsheet tools, you can also, integrate Canva Sheets with HubSpot, Statista, Google Analytics, and even import CSVs and Excel files with Data Connectors. Canva's AI-powered Magic Insights feature can "instantly uncover patterns, trends, and key takeaways in a click." If you want to convert your boring data into a chart to make it visually easier to understand, instead of manually finding the best one, Magic Charts can recommend the optimum one for you. Image Credit: Canva The best part of spreadsheet applications is that you can use formulas to manipulate data. However, if you have short-term memory like I do and tend to forget everything seconds after you remember it, Magic Formulas is another feature that can help. All you need to do is ask a question in plain language, and Magic Formulas will do all the math for you. Canva Sheets also works seamlessly with the rest of Canva. So, whether you're creating an Instagram Story or a presentation for your final thesis, you can add a Sheet page to your design or even use it as an element in your presentation. While Canva Sheets is certainly exciting, Canva's brand-new generative AI coding assistant is what really excites me as a computer science student. Similar to Gemini's Code Assistant or even ChatGPT, all you need to do is describe your idea to it, and it can create "dynamic, custom tools" for you within seconds. Whether you'd like to create an interactive learning game or build a custom timer to integrate within your design, Canva Code can help you out, even if you've never written a line of code yourself. For instance, I asked Canva Code to create a timer for me, and the output was...incredible. Similar to how your first pancake never turns out great, it's rare for an AI output to match your expectations right away. Fortunately, Canva Code can revise your content based on your feedback until it aligns with your vision. For instance, the timer it created had a purple background. So, I asked the AI assistant to change the background color to yellow: Or, if you find that it's struggling to produce exactly what you're envisioning, and you have a bit of coding expertise, you can simply copy the code out of Canva Code and tweak it however you'd like. You can try the tools out for yourself as well! To unlock the features above, head to Canva and click the icon I've circled: You'll be prompted to click a series of icons, like the envelopes on the banner, and will be redirected to a Congratulations, you've made it screen. Simply tap the Let's go button, and you'll soon be redirected to the new Canva homepage with all the tools!

Canva unveils magical AI-powered spreadsheets, graphs, and more

Canva showed off an almost overwhelming number of new features at Canva Create 2025. Canva, which began life as a platform for visual design, has tossed the rules aside. In addition to Visual Suite 2.0, the company has added coding, spreadsheets, and graphs to its AI capabilities. It's a rather sharp change for Canva -- although if a social media company like Facebook can toss its brand identity aside for a failed run at the metaverse, then why can't Canva try its own hand at its own pivot? Canva's shift toward the spreadsheet actually makes sense, according to the company. "While data is a critical part of visual communication, whether it's creating charts, forms, reports, dashboards, or infographics, it's also complex and disconnected from the creative process," Melanie Perkins, the chief executive of Canva, said in a blog post. The snippet of video that shows off what's being called "Canva Sheets" is impressive: not only are Canva's Sheets visually bright and dynamic, but Canva has included so-called "Magic Insights" and "Magic Formulas." Instead of simply fishing around to create a formula, you can enter it in natural language and Canva's AI will come up with the formula and apply it for you. It's a reminder that Microsoft Excel -- for all of the power it offers and its installed base -- just isn't as visually appealing. Canva, which can import files from Excel, is designed to tell visual stories. It's free to use, though syncing with your brand logo or storing more than 5GB within Canva's cloud will cost extra. Canva Sheets and the related Charts app are designed to tell visual stories, Canva says. Like Excel, you can highlight data and Canva Charts will recommend one or a series of charts. Again, though, they're bright and dynamic -- something that Excel really isn't. Canva didn't say when these features would arrive, but some of the graphics indicate that they're "coming soon." Canva says that both Sheets and Charts can be integrated with other features offered by Canva, such as the AI-powered Magic Write feature to fill in blanks or holes in existing copy. And then there's Canva AI, which is what other companies might call an LLM or chatbot. Within Canva, it appears ready to be a design assistant. In one example, a user could upload a photo and have Canva AI turn it into an Instagram introduction post. A related "Design for me" option helps iterate designs, optionally based on a reference image. It might seem odd that Canva AI can also generate code, but Canva seems to think that someone like a web designer might use it to code an element or widget rather than duck out to use another program. Canva's hope is that you'll use Visual Suite 2.0 as a jumping-off point for this, moving back and forth between various design types to create what you need. There's even a new photo editor, with a way to take an object and inject it into an AI-generated background while maintaining lighting. "Whether you're brainstorming on a whiteboard, mapping out your strategy in a doc, or building a campaign across slides, spreadsheets, and socials, everything lives in one place," Perkins wrote. "This is more than just convenience; it's a whole new way to work."

Canva's New Visual Suite 2.0 Offers AI-Powered Design Tools for Everyone

Popular online design and publishing tool Canva launched Visual Suite 2.0, a new all-in-one AI design partner for teams and individuals. Canvas Visual Suite 2.0 aims to redefine creativity and productivity with a slew of new AI-powered products for seamless content creation. Unveiled at its Canva Create event at Sofi Stadium in Los Angeles, the suite ushers in a new chapter for the already widely used platform in which Canva says "367 designs are created every second, with a total of 35 billion designs created since Canva's launch in 2013." Visual Suite 2.0 brings content, data, and design under one umbrella offering powerful visual spreadsheets to advanced data visualization, conversational design, personalized content at scale, and revolutionary new ways to create interactive experiences. Of the immense update, Canva shared, "We're thrilled to unveil the Visual Suite 2.0 where creativity meets productivity, the biggest product launch since Canva was founded more than a decade ago. Each year, our community of 230 million people shares millions of ideas, and one we hear time and again is the desire to bring creativity and productivity into a single, seamless flow," said Melanie Perkins, Canva's Co-founder and CEO. "From reimagined workplace essentials to entirely new ways to create with your own design partner, we're excited to continue making it easier than ever for anyone to bring their ideas to life." The capstone of Visual Suite 2.0 is One Design, which Canva describes as a world's first in redefining how teams create. As the name alludes, One Design will enable users to create everything from documents and presentations to websites using a single design. The homogenized format will eliminate the need for separate apps, fragmented workflows or inconsistencies and incompatible files. Entire campaigns can be created from scratch, everything from planning, briefing, design, delivery is now in one seamless collaborative place. Visual Suite 2.0 introduces Canva's take on spreadsheets with Sheets, aimed at simplifying data-driven work. Hoping to take the stress and anxiety out of working with data, Canva Sheets uses what it characterizes as a visual yet powerful and intuitive experience to integrate data, text, and visual assets. Paired with Canva's Magic Studio, Sheets simplifies spreadsheet work with features to scan data sets, highlight key patterns and takeaways as well as data connectors to import information from Google Analytics, HubSpot, Snowflake, and Statistica for seamless data integration. With the ability to transform spreadsheets into content engines, Magic Studio at Scale promises to create personalized, on brand content quickly and efficiently. The company says that vast amounts of content can be created in seconds from multi-market campaigns to sales outreach and internal communications. Magic Studio at Scale employs templates that Canva promises enable "instant population of dynamic data inputs eliminating manual effort, speeding up production, and ensuring consistency at every touch point." Intending to take the complexity, static, and inaccessibility out of working with data, Magic Charts allows users of any skill level to convert raw numbers into dynamic, on brand visuals in seconds. The tool can be used to create anything from scrollable reports to animated visualizations, stunning infographics, and more, all with the power of AI. Magic Charts bridge the gap between data and design, empowering teams to communicate insights and create effectively. Describing beginning with a blank page as often the hardest part of starting a project, Canvas new AI promises to "design at the speed of conversation." Canva describes its AI as, "a voice-enabled, conversational creative partner that brings all of Canva's generative AI tools into one seamless workflow, helping anyone go from idea to execution in seconds. From generating text, slides, and images to editing photos and resizing designs, it all happens with just a prompt or your voice." This voice based approach to AI prompts across Canvas tools enables users of any skill level to dive into projects head first. Tackling the often technical and complex world of designing interactive content, new Canva Code removes the barriers of coding with prompt based designs. Without the need for writing code or any external tools, interactive designs of all types from calculators to forms, flashcards, and more can now be created using Canva's AI voice prompts. Now part of the visual suite, Canva's upgraded Photo Editor is described as both a standalone and integrated solution for professional grade, AI-powered edits. "Canva Photo Editor has evolved into a more powerful tool designed for efficiency and ease whether working in a design or as a quick edit and export. Transformational features include AI-powered point-and-click editing to modify select elements with precision, AI-generated backgrounds that account for lighting and layout, and effortless object removal or replacement," Canva describes. Canva says that its "committed to building the world's most trusted platform" and back all of it's AI tools with Canva Shield, it's collection of trust, safety, and privacy tools. Canva Shield includes content moderation, automated reviews and Reporting, AI privacy settings, as well as machine learning technology to prevent the creation of unsafe or inappropriate content. Canva Enterprise customers also receive Ai and dedication at no additional cost. Canva says that this allows Enterprise customers to, "design with peace of mind knowing we've got your back in the rare event of an intellectual property claim stemming from content you've designed with Magic Studio products." Most importantly for all users, Canva promises that it will not train its proprietary AI on user's private content without permission. Users are opted out of AI training on private design content by default, with the ability to review or change the settings in the Account Preferences tab.

Canva launches Canva AI for coding, photo editing and spreadsheets

You can build your own custom, interactive mini-apps with Canva Code and Anthropic In a bid to maintain its market share of the creative market amid increased pressure from Adobe, which has bid big on artificial intelligence, Canva has announced a series of upgrades to enhance worker efficiency. With the Canva AI Assistant, users can generate images, copy and design ideas to set them off in the right direction, with document and mock-up creation handled by the assistant. AI's utility deepens with the launch of Canva Code, via a partnership with Claude-maker Anthropic, because users can also create their own min-apps like maps and calculators without extensive coding or development knowledge. Canva co-founder and CEO Melanie Perkins shared an overview of all the new features in a blog post, noting the company's goal to make design "simple, joyful, collaborative, and truly accessible." The self-proclaimed "biggest product launch yet" comes in the form of Visual Suite 2.0, which promises to bring together all use cases such as presentations, videos, whiteboards and websites into one new format. Among the key launches is Canva Sheets, a new spreadsheet template that sits somewhere between being a conventional spreadsheet for quantitative data and a project management app. Magic Insights and Magic Formulas use AI to "do the heavy lifting for you," and the integration with the rest of Visual Suite 2.0 makes it easy to link to other content. Boasting about the more than 16 billion times users have access Canva Magic Studio, Perkins shared some other handy AI enhancements, such as a text-filling Magic Write tool and Magic Resize for creating images in different aspect ratios for social media campaigns. Adding even more functionality into the creative suite, Canva Code allows users to use natural language prompts to describe ideas for interactive elements, which are then built automatically without the need for any hardcore programming. Visual Suite 2.0 is now available to try from the Canva homepage.

Canva unveils its biggest redesign in 13 years

Don't let Canva's rainbow gradients fool you. The Aussies are relentless, and their global conquest through easy-to-use design software continues as they set their sights on markets owned by Adobe and Microsoft. Even after a controversial price increase last year, growth is still explosive. Canva has added 50 million active users over the past 12 months, bringing its total to 230 million, with $3 billion in annual revenue. But despite this success, Canva decided it was time for a redesign. And it's launching what the company considers its biggest overhaul since the app launched in 2012. It includes a Teams-crushing approach to file collaboration, a powerful AI-fueled spreadsheet reminiscent of Notion, and the ability to spin up about any project with an AI prompt -- including code. At the core of the updates, Canva has reimagined the project interface of its entire Visual Suite. Whereas you used to pick what you wanted to do on a single track -- like make a website or design a T-shirt -- Canva has been using AI automation to blur the bounds between projects, turning a document into a slide deck, for some time. Now, the interface supports this behavior by default. Your canvas sits center screen, and just below it, Canva has added a bar that contains any and all permutations of what else your project can be. So you can be working on a document above, but have thumbnails with decks, social media posts, and other variations below. You just hit a little "plus" sign and determine what sort of template you'd like to add on next, and AI can take the first steps to translate what you already have to this new type of media.

Canva launches suite of generative AI features

The platform is combining its tools, to be used via a single, streamlined interface. Australian software and graphic design company Canva has unveiled its latest innovations, with a collection of generative AI (GenAI) tools and features for coding, photo editing and spreadsheet management. The Visual Suite 2.0 streamlines Canva's tools for a straight-forward interface. GenAI is becoming increasingly popular, with many technology companies incorporating AI into their work processes and devices, for example Apple and Meta. Canva's new AI features enable users to access an AI-powered assistant, generate designs, write content and map out ideas, via written or voice commands. Other new features include the ability to create widgets and interactive design elements, without the need for advanced coding knowledge, AI-powered charts for reports and infographics, a photo editor with in-built AI-powered background and editing options and the space to collect your work all in one place, for a unified working environment. Speaking in a press release on their website, a Canva representative said, "From the teachers and teams, to the start-ups and side hustlers, marketers and memory-makers, we're incredibly excited to bring your wishes to life. These new launches have already completely changed the way we work and we can't wait to see what you all create." Canva isn't the only organisation currently exploring the possibilities of the GenAI realm. OpenAI recently announced that it had plans to launch a memory feature for its ChatGPT technology, that would allow it to respond to users based on ideas formed from previous conversations. This could however, be a controversial move, as the organisation has already faced criticism from regions such as Canada, Italy and the wider EU, for its perceived invasion of privacy, misuse of data and lack of clarity regarding how data is collected and stored. Don't miss out on the knowledge you need to succeed. Sign up for the Daily Brief, Silicon Republic's digest of need-to-know sci-tech news.

Canva launches fleet of Generative AI features

The platform is combining its tools, to be used via a single, streamlined interface. Australian software and graphic design company Canva has unveiled its latest innovations, with a collection of Generative AI (GenAI) tools and features for coding, photo editing and spreadsheet management. The Visual Suite 2.0 streamlines Canva's tools for a straight-forward interface. GenAI is becoming increasingly popular, with many technology companies incorporating AI into their work processes and devices, for example Apple and Meta. Canva's new AI features enable users to access an AI-powered assistant, generate designs, write content and map out ideas, via written or voice commands. Other new features include the ability to create widgets and interactive design elements, without the need for advanced coding knowledge, AI-powered charts for reports and infographics, a photo editor with in-built AI-powered background and editing options and the space to collect your work all in one place, for a unified working environment. Speaking in a press release on their website, a Canva representative said, "From the teachers and teams, to the start-ups and side hustlers, marketers and memory-makers, we're incredibly excited to bring your wishes to life. These new launches have already completely changed the way we work and we can't wait to see what you all create." Canva isn't the only organisation currently exploring the possibilities of the GenAI realm. OpenAI recently announced that it had plans to launch a memory feature for its ChatGPT technology, that would allow it to respond to users based on ideas formed from previous conversations. This could however, be a controversial move, as the organisation has already faced criticism from regions such as Canada, Italy and the wider EU, for its perceived invasion of privacy, misuse of data and lack of clarity regarding how data is collected and stored. Don't miss out on the knowledge you need to succeed. Sign up for the Daily Brief, Silicon Republic's digest of need-to-know sci-tech news.

Canva's Visual Suite 2.0 Brings New AI-Powered Design Tools

The company is also adding Canva AI, a voice-enabled AI assistant Canva unveiled Visual Suite 2.0, a redesigned platform with new features and AI-powered tools, on Thursday. The Sydney-based visual communications platform showcased several new features under the Visual Suite 2.0 umbrella, such as Canva AI, Canva Sheets, Canva Code, Magic Charts, and Visual Suite in One Design, at its annual Canva Create event in Los Angeles. The company did not reveal when these features might be rolled out widely or if all of these features will be available to those on the free tier of the platform. In a press release, the company detailed all the new features and tools coming to users under the Visual Suite 2.0 banner. Canva called it the company's biggest product launch since its inception in 2012 and highlighted that it is reimagining the design process for the AI-powered era. The focus areas of the new features include creativity, communication, and collaboration. One of the major new additions includes Visual Suite in One Design. Canva is now increasing the scope of what users can create in a single interface. Previously, design sheets were locked to a fixed dimension -- so if a user was working on a presentation, they could only add slides that matched standard presentation dimensions. Visual Suite changes that by allowing users to add and work with slides of varying dimensions within the same project, offering greater flexibility and creative freedom. This means users can add a presentation slide, a document, and an Instagram Story slide to the same project. Canva says this will eliminate the need for separate tools and fragmented workflows. Canva Sheets is another new addition that brings a spreadsheet tool to allow users to add complex data to the sheet to create a visual experience integrating data and text. The tool uses the AI-powered Magic Studio, and users can simplify their data with features like Magic Insights. Users can also import data from HubSpot, Statista, Google Analytics and more using the Data Connectors feature. Canva said the tool will also support common spreadsheet formulas. In addition to Canva Sheets, the platform is also adding Magic Charts, an AI experience that converts raw numbers into visuals with a single tap. The company says users will be able to generate scrollable reports, animated visualisations, and infographics. Canva is also adding new templates to let users to choose from. Canva AI, a voice-enabled AI assistant, is also being added to the platform. It is a quick shortcut to all the Magic Studio-powered AI features in a single place. The company says users will be able to access these tools in a conversational manner and generate text, slides, and images seamlessly. Canva AI will also allow users to edit photos and resize designs with a single voice-based prompt. The company is also focusing on coding with its new Canva Code tools. It is essentially a low-code/no-code tool that allows users to use AI to write code for different apps and web designs with prompts. The company claims that users will be able to go from code to design preview. Users can create website landing pages, classroom resources, and other interactive designs. Finally, Canva Photo Editor is being added to the platform's Visual Suite. With new AI features, users will be able to click specific elements in an image to edit them, add AI-generated backgrounds, and remove or replace objects. Canva also said that the company has taken steps to ensure the safety of these AI-powered tools. While building these products, Canva used "input and output moderation, safety filters, bias mitigation, and clear user controls over how data is used in AI training."

Canva launches new AI tool expansion - but is that really what designers want?

Canva has unveiled its biggest expansion yet, announcing a new suite of AI tools to boost creative freedom and productivity. With innovative additions to enhance collaboration through spreadsheets, data storytelling and design, Visual Suite 2.0 reestablishes Canva as the frontrunner in AI-powered creativity. Canva is renowned for being one of the most accessible graphic design software options, providing a suite of tools to suit a range of experience levels. Focusing on speed, collaboration and curating the perfect streamlined workflow, Canva's latest expansion takes us into a new era of creative autonomy. Visual Suite 2.0 introduces brand-new tools alongside improvements to Canva's existing creative suite. Highlights of the expansion include a unified creative process allowing collaborators to create entire campaigns - from documents to websites - in one single format. Canva Sheets and Magic Charts make data handling more intuitive and immersive, while Canva Code transforms static content into dynamic visuals via simple prompts with no coding experience necessary. AI takes centre stage with photo editing tools and Canva AI - a "voice-enabled, conversational creative partner" that can help with a number of tasks, from generating text and images to editing and resizing designs. Despite creatives' concerns about how AI is impacting graphic design, Canva claims it "sees AI as a tool to amplify, not replace, human creativity, and is committed to building AI responsibly and transparently." Bringing accessible design to a wider audience, Visual Suite 2.0 provides intuitive tools to bridge the creative gap. As more companies embrace AI in their creative practice (even top design studios like Pentagram), Canva's expansion is simply a sign of the times.

Canva Announces Visual Suite 2.0, Adding AI-Powered Spreadsheets, Coding, and Photo Editing

Canva has unveiled its latest product update, Visual Suite 2.0, which aims to merge creative and productivity workflows into a single platform. The announcement follows Canva's long-standing ambition to make design more accessible, moving beyond isolated tools for visual content, and marks a significant expansion of the company's suite of services. Visual Suite 2.0 introduces a "world-first" design format that brings together presentations, videos, whiteboards, websites, spreadsheets, and more within one environment. Of course, we've seen web apps for office applications from the likes of Google and Microsoft. And we've seen web apps for design tools from the likes of Adobe and Figma but a single platform for design apps as well as office apps? That's what Canva has just brought out with the launch of Visual Suite 2.0. Rather than juggling multiple files or applications, users can now combine ideas for events, campaigns, and lessons in a single canvas. According to Canva, the main goal is to streamline the creative process by minimising the need to switch between disparate tools. One of the most notable additions is Canva Sheets, described by the company as a spreadsheet tool "reimagined" for visual communication. It supports AI-powered features such as Magic Insights and Magic Formulas, which allow users to input data and have charts, insights, or formulas generated automatically. This isn't a new concept since Google Sheets has had their own Gemini integration for data analysis and content creation. What Canva has managed to pull off is the ability to fill empty cells using prompts. This is quite significant for content generators and would enable a huge uptick in productivity. Canva is incorporating its Magic Studio AI engine into the new platform to support large-scale content generation. A bulk translation function also allows instant localisation of text entries. In addition, Bulk Create offers a way to produce multiple versions of a single design simultaneously, storing generated links or content in new spreadsheet columns for easy management. Magic Resize, another AI-driven tool, automates the resizing of entire sets of designs to different formats or dimensions. The tool also includes drag-and-drop layouts and integration with platforms like Google Analytics and HubSpot. By providing live data connections, Canva Sheets is intended to simplify the creation of reports, dashboards, or infographics without exporting data to separate design software. Alongside spreadsheet tools, Magic Charts is intended to eliminate the complexity of data visualisation. Users can connect live data and receive automated chart-type suggestions, converting raw figures into interactive graphics that remain synchronised with changing datasets. Canva describes this feature as part of a broader push to blend data analysis, visual storytelling, and design in a single platform. Another key feature is Canva Code, designed to simplify the process of building interactive elements or applications -- such as learning games, custom calculators, or personalised tools. By typing a description of what they want, users can generate code-based widgets which are then embedded in any Canva design. The feature does not require traditional coding knowledge, and its output can be published or shared as links or embedded modules. Central to Visual Suite 2.0 is Canva AI, an AI assistant that can respond to voice, text, or media prompts. Its functions include generating graphics, presentations, or layouts based on user requests, with the aim of speeding up initial design drafts. Canva states that this assistant is designed to help users who need to move rapidly from an idea to a finished creative asset. The company positions Canva AI as a support tool rather than a replacement for creative roles, suggesting that it tackles repetitive tasks to allow more time for high-level planning and refinement. In addition to data-driven and AI-powered features, Canva has added a Photo Editor that allows users to modify backgrounds, remove unwanted objects, and adjust the appearance of images. According to the company, these edits can be made "in a single click," using AI models that factor in lighting and subject context to produce seamless results. The aim is to eliminate the need for users to shift between different editing applications or browser tabs. Visual Suite 2.0 is rolling out on the Canva homepage, where existing and new users can access features including Canva Sheets, Canva Code, and the AI-powered Photo Editor. More details are available on Canva's website, along with introductory resources for each of the new tools. By integrating spreadsheets, coding, AI-driven content creation, and advanced photo editing into a single ecosystem, Canva is positioning itself as a more comprehensive alternative to traditional office suites and design software. The company has been steadily moving in this direction, having introduced features for presentations, whiteboards, and brand management tools in recent years. With Visual Suite 2.0, Canva appears to be taking another step towards unifying productivity and creativity under one interface.