India Emerges as a Global Hub for AI Integration: Insights from Canva’s Robert Kawalsky

In the wake of the Canva AI 2.0 rollout, Robert Kawalsky, the company’s Head of Product, has identified India as a primary catalyst for the global adoption of artificial intelligence. Kawalsky noted that the region’s creative community and enterprise sectors are leading the way in integrating advanced AI tools into professional workflows.

The launch of AI 2.0 introduces “agentic” capabilities, which transition the platform from a standard design tool into a proactive digital assistant. This new phase of “Layered Intelligence” allows the system to recognize brand-specific styles and automate complex, multi-stage projects. Kawalsky highlighted that Indian users have been particularly adept at utilizing these features to bridge the gap between conceptualization and final production.

According to Kawalsky, the rapid uptake of AI in India is driven by a unique blend of a massive creator economy and a robust small-business landscape. The “agentic” nature of the new ...