Design

How to build Canva

Online design platform with templates, drag-and-drop editor, team collaboration, and AI features.

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Features (10)

Drag-and-drop editor

Millions of templates

Brand kit management

Real-time collaboration

Background remover (AI)

Text to image (AI)

Video editing

Print ordering

Content planner

Team folders and permissions

User Stories (5)

As a user, I can create designs from templates

As a team, I can collaborate on designs in real-time

As a brand manager, I can maintain brand consistency with brand kits

As a user, I can use AI to generate images and remove backgrounds

As a user, I can order prints directly

Suggested Tech Stack

ReactJavaPythonPostgreSQLRedisS3CloudFrontKafkaTensorFlow

Non-Functional Requirements

Category	Requirement	Target
Performance	Editor load	< 3s to interactive for complex designs
Performance	Export	< 5s for high-res PNG/PDF generation
Scalability	Users	170M+ MAU with concurrent editing sessions
Availability	Editor	99.95% — users depend on it for daily work
Security	Enterprise	SOC2, SSO (SAML), brand kit access controls

Release Milestones

MVPTemplate Editor

Drag-and-dropTemplate libraryText and imagesExport PNG/PDF

v1.0Collaboration

Real-time editingBrand kitsFoldersBackground remover AIResize magic

v2.0Platform

Video editingText-to-image AIPrint orderingContent plannerCanva Apps SDK

Success Metrics

Designs created per user per month: > 5

Pro conversion: > 5% of free users

Template usage rate: > 70% of designs start from template

Enterprise team retention: > 90% annual

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Non-Functional Requirements

Category	Requirement	Target
Performance	Editor load	< 3s to interactive for complex designs
Performance	Export	< 5s for high-res PNG/PDF generation
Scalability	Users	170M+ MAU with concurrent editing sessions
Availability	Editor	99.95% — users depend on it for daily work
Security	Enterprise	SOC2, SSO (SAML), brand kit access controls