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Figma now has AI motion graphics and shader tools

Figma announced a series of product updates at its Config 2026 conference, focusing on closing the gap between visual design and code. The centerpiece of the announcement is a reimagined canvas that Figma says is optimized for full-stack development, consolidating teams, AI agents, and design materials into a single working environment.

Among the more immediately practical additions are coding layers, which allow designers and developers to edit the underlying code of a project directly within the Figma Design canvas. This removes the need to jump between Figma and a separate code editor for minor adjustments - a workflow interruption that has long been a friction point for teams working across design and engineering.

On the generative side, Figma has introduced AI-powered motion graphics tools that let users create animations and transition effects by describing them in plain language through a chatbot interface. Alongside this, new shader tools offer additional options for visual effects work. Both features extend Figma's existing AI capabilities, which have gradually expanded over the past couple of years to cover layout suggestions, asset generation, and now motion and code.

The announcements position Figma more directly as a full-stack product environment rather than a purely visual design tool. As the line between design and development continues to blur, particularly with AI agents taking on more implementation tasks, consolidating these workflows into one canvas could meaningfully change how cross-functional teams collaborate and ship products.

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Adobe acquires image and video enhancement tool maker Topaz Labs

Adobe has acquired Topaz Labs, the company behind a suite of AI-powered image and video enhancement tools. Adobe says it plans to integrate Topaz Labs' technology across its existing applications. The deal brings a well-regarded set of upscaling, sharpening, and noise-reduction tools under Adobe's umbrella.

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Less Than a Quarter of Americans Use AI to Create or Edit Images

A new Pew Research study finds that only 24% of Americans use AI tools for creating or editing images and videos. Despite the rapid growth of generative image and video platforms, adoption remains limited across the general population. The findings offer a grounded look at where everyday use of these tools actually stands.

Multimodal

Adobe’s AI Assistant Wants to Give Photographers More Time for Actual Creative Tasks

Adobe has rolled out its Firefly-powered AI Assistant across Creative Cloud, bringing agentic AI capabilities to Photoshop, Premiere, Illustrator, InDesign, and Frame.io. Users can now issue natural-language instructions to carry out editing tasks across photos, videos, and graphics. The goal is to reduce time spent on repetitive workflows so photographers and editors can focus on creative decisions.