Canva and Google Slides: improve the design you have

Begin with something you can judge

Choose a presentation or design you understand and make a copy. Then ask for one improvement, such as clearer instructions on a crowded page. Starting with familiar work makes it easier to judge whether the AI helped.

Two announcements this week make that approach more practical. Canva introduced Brush on October 29. Google announced whole-presentation editing inside Google Slides on October 30, following the start of its rollout on October 29.

Both changes concern editing existing work. That can be useful when you are explaining an app idea, preparing a team guide or updating a product presentation.

Read the announcement: Canva: Introducing Canva Brush.

Canva Brush keeps designs editable

Canva says Brush now powers supported design edits in Canva AI for Canva Pro subscribers. It can change text and layouts, adjust a design across pages and adapt work to another format. The resulting elements remain editable.

To choose the new tool, Canva directs users to select Brush in the Canva AI dropdown. Broader availability is planned. Its announcement also lists work still ahead, including stronger handling of image-heavy layouts, so treat the current supported edits as the starting point.

For practice, take a product introduction and ask for a clearer order of information. Say which headline, facts and images must remain. Then inspect the result yourself rather than assuming a more attractive page explains the product better.

Google Slides can apply changes across a deck

Gemini in Google Slides can now edit multiple slides or a whole presentation from its side panel. Google describes changes to content and style, including using another presentation as a reference. A change summary appears afterwards, and undo and version history remain available.

The feature works on a computer and launches in English. Eligible plans include Business Standard and Plus, Enterprise Standard and Plus, Google AI Pro and Ultra, and Google AI Pro for Education. The rollout may take longer than 15 days, so eligible accounts may still be waiting.

Google also describes temporary higher limits for creating multi-slide presentations through at least December 1. That is promotional access, not a promise of unlimited future use. Check the current limits in your account before relying on it for repeated work.

Give the edit a clear purpose

A useful practice request might be: make the next action easier to find, keep every price and date unchanged, and leave space for a person to ask for help. Those instructions connect design choices to what the reader needs.

Use invented or approved information while learning. Review names, numbers, links, reading order and anything the AI removed. A preview on your own screen is only the beginning: ask someone unfamiliar with the work what they understand.

1. Save a copy and write down the purpose of the design.
2. Choose one edit and state what must stay unchanged.
3. Compare the edited pages with the original, checking facts and readability.
4. Keep the useful changes and undo the rest. Save the request that worked.

Carry the same skill into app building

Our perspective is that clearer requests and careful review will remain useful as design tools improve. These updates can help you practise those skills without beginning with a whole app.

When you are ready to build, your revised design can help explain the intended experience. An app still needs working actions, permissions and checks of its own. Use the design to start that conversation and make the next decision clearer.