Shopify’s Canvas turns store setup into an AI chat experience

The tool folds Shopify’s AI capabilities into one interface, aiming to make full store creation more accessible to non-coders.

Shopify has launched Canvas, an AI‑driven store builder that lets merchants create and edit Shopify storefronts by chatting with its Sidekick assistant instead of manually tweaking themes or writing code. As Sidekick applies changes, Canvas renders the actual theme code live, so users can immediately interact with the store, test animations and responsiveness, and zoom in or out on different parts of the site. Sidekick can now operate directly on theme files, supported by a simplified theme architecture that exposes store structure, logic, and design in a way the model can reliably modify. Merchants can still adjust individual elements manually, but Shopify expects most users to describe desired changes in natural language through chat. Positioned alongside AI site builders from Wix, Squarespace, Webflow, and others, Canvas aims to lower the barrier to launching an online store for merchants who lack coding skills or budget for professional developers and designers.