Figma adds an AI assistant to its collaborative canvas

In short: Figma is adding an AI assistant inside its design workspace, starting with Figma Design.

What happened

Figma, a popular tool teams use to design apps and websites together, has introduced a built-in AI assistant that works inside its collaborative canvas. A “canvas” here is the shared workspace where people place and edit design elements, like a digital whiteboard.

Figma says you can type what you want in plain language, and the assistant can generate a new design, edit an existing design, or handle repetitive tasks. For example, it can create multiple variations of a layout, which is like asking for several draft versions instead of redrawing the same thing again and again.

Figma also says you can run more than one assistant at the same time, each working on different tasks. The company says the assistant is tuned for design work, meaning it is trained to better understand common design parts like layouts, text, and components.

The AI assistant will be available first in Figma Design. Figma plans to bring it to other Figma products over time, and it says it wants to connect design and code more closely inside its apps.

Why it matters

For people who design products, a lot of time can go into routine tasks and quick variations. If the assistant works as described, it could speed up early drafts and small edits, while leaving people to make the key decisions about what a design should look like and how it should feel.

Source: TechCrunch AI