Shopify has launched Canvas, a site-building tool that lets merchants create online stores by chatting with its AI agent, Sidekick.
Merchants use it to set up and modify their storefronts by talking to Sidekick, and each change appears as soon as the agent makes it. Merchants can view the whole store as it takes shape or zoom in on specific details. They can also still select individual elements and edit them by hand.
Before Canvas, Shopify's no-code builder worked by editing a selected theme and rearranging its modular sections and blocks. Deeper customisation meant editing code or bringing in a developer. Canvas aims to remove that step by having the AI agent make the changes merchants describe.
How Canvas works
According to Shopify, Canvas does not show a static preview. It renders the actual code behind the merchant's store. As a result, merchants can test full interactivity and animation and check how pages appear on different screen sizes. Sidekick also takes screenshots of the work in progress, so the agent sees the same output as the merchant while the site updates.
To make this possible, Shopify gave Sidekick the ability to work directly with theme files. The company also simplified its theme architecture so that the agent can more easily understand and change a store's structure, logic, and design.
Sidekick itself is not a new product. It has previously been used to write code, build apps, customise themes, and make other edits. Canvas is the first time these functions have been combined into a full site-building product. In Canvas, merchants can see the entire store at once, pan and zoom across it, and make updates to the site's actual files.
Initial limitations
Canvas is at an early stage and launches with several restrictions. The following are not part of the initial release: third-party theme support, app blocks and extensions, markets, translations, rollouts, and theme updates.
The tool is also available on desktop only. Shopify stated that it plans to support these features over time. For now, merchants who rely on markets or translations will not be able to manage them through Canvas.
Market context
The launch is part of a wider move towards building websites without writing code directly. Canvas joins AI-powered site-building tools from Wix, Squarespace, Webflow, and Framer. It also competes with vibe-coding platforms such as Lovable and Replit.
For digital commerce, the main implication concerns the cost and skills needed to open an online store. Shopify previously relied on templates and developer involvement for bigger changes. With Canvas, it is moving more of the store-building process into a conversational interface handled by its own AI agent. As the product matures, it could make online selling more accessible to people who cannot afford developers and designers or do not have time to learn to code.
