MarTech: Adobe expands capacity for experts, Canva expands access to design

If you use AI to make images, posters or social media posts, you have probably come across both Adobe and Canva. The two companies are heading in different directions, and that may affect which tool is right for you.

MarTech describes the difference this way: Adobe expands capacity for experts, while Canva expands access to design. That is MarTech's assessment, not a joint analysis.

Adobe: many models and an assistant

Adobe Firefly is a collection of AI models. There are Adobe's own, which the company calls "commercially safe," meaning safe to use commercially. On top of that come partner models from Google (Gemini), OpenAI (GPT Image), FLUX, Runway, Luma AI and ElevenLabs, among others.

According to Adobe, its own models are trained on licensed content from Adobe Stock and on material in the public domain, not on users' own or generated content.

Firefly is available on web and mobile, and it can be used in Creative Cloud apps such as Photoshop, Premiere, Illustrator, Adobe Express and Lightroom. Around April 15-16, 2026, Adobe also launched a Firefly AI Assistant. According to MarTech, it can act across Creative Cloud, edit files, coordinate steps and switch between tools.

There is a free plan with limited daily generations. The paid plans are Standard with 2,000 monthly credits, Pro with 4,000 credits and Photoshop on web and mobile, and Pro Plus with 10,000 credits and premium features. Adobe's price was listed in Turkish lira, and business plans start at 982 lira per user per month. That price applies only to the local version of the site.

Canva: editable designs for marketing

Canva launched AI 2.0 at about the same time, with prompt-based editing across the platform, meaning you describe changes with text. The same day, Canva expanded its Klaviyo integration so marketers can design and streamline entire campaigns in Canva.

Craft came later. According to ContentGrip, Canva announced this in-house image model for marketing tasks on October 22, 2026. It first plans the visual hierarchy and text placement and then draws the image. According to Canva, it is trained on millions of human-designed templates such as posters and social graphics.

Craft produces images in 2K resolution in more than 30 image formats and is available in Dream Lab and through Canva's public API. Support for MCP is planned but not yet active. The model is designed to work together with Canva Magic Layers, which can turn an image into editable design elements.

According to Canva's own reporting, Craft ranked fourth among image models in the DesignArena rankings at launch. That figure has not been independently verified.

What does it mean for you?

Adobe emphasizes many models and AI that works across professional apps. Canva emphasizes marketing design that you can edit afterward. Which one fits best depends on whether you are used to Adobe's apps or would rather build campaigns directly in Canva.