Tech Disruptors Canva CTO on Design at AI Speed
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Jan 13, 2026 Brendan Humphreys, Chief Technology Officer at Canva with a rich engineering background from Atlassian, reveals how Canva is innovating at AI speed. He discusses transforming R&D by involving the entire team, implementing a disciplined API for rapid feature launches, and leveraging AI tools to enhance creativity. Brendan also highlights the shift towards hiring 'AI-native' engineers and detailed plans for enterprise growth, including strategic acquisitions and compliance measures to support large organizations. Exciting updates on AI and product enhancements are on the horizon!
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Keep Humans In The Coding Loop
- Enforce a strict human-in-the-loop policy for AI-generated code and require skilled engineers to own and verify outputs.
- Brendan warns models produce confident but sometimes incorrect or unsafe code, so humans must assess and own it.
Hire For AI Competency And Mentor Juniors
- Update interviews to screen for AI competency and require candidates to partner with tools without outsourcing thinking.
- Brendan advises pairing junior hires with senior mentors to preserve fundamentals while leveraging AI as a superpower.
Everyone Is Now In R&D
- Canva moved from engineering-owned R&D to a model where every employee experiments with AI and shares results.
- Brendan runs fortnightly AI forums to cross-pollinate successful workflows across sales, support, and design teams.