Creative Technologist (Generative AI) Full-time

Company Description

Join the team redefining how the world experiences design.

Hey, g’day, mabuhay, kia ora, 你好, hallo, vítejte!

Thanks for stopping by. We know job hunting can be a little time consuming and you’re probably keen to find out what’s on offer, so we’ll get straight to the point.

Where and how you can work

Our flagship campus is in Sydney. We also have a campus in Melbourne and co-working spaces in Brisbane, Perth and Adelaide. But you have choice in where and how you work, we trust our Canvanauts to choose the balance that empowers them and their team to achieve their goals.

What you’d be doing in this role

As Canva scales change continues to be part of our DNA. But we like to think that’s all part of the fun. So this will give you the flavour of the type of things you’ll be working on when you start, but this will likely evolve.

• You will apply a blend of design skills and software development to explore, prototype, and build experiences that define the future of how people interact with content in Canva.
• You’ll embrace creative challenges and use a strong coding skillset to visualise new ideas, show what’s possible and break perceived boundaries.
• This is a highly collaborative role. You’ll work side by side with Designers, Researchers, and Engineers every day to prototype delightful experiences.
• You’ll develop documentation and processes for the team to use.
• You’ll play a key role in nurturing and contributing to the growth of the Creative Technology subspecialty, helping shape its future direction and influence within Canva. Whether you’re pushing boundaries with AI-powered prototypes or mentoring the next wave of talented Creative Technologists, your impact will be felt across the team.

In short, you’ll be shaping the future of design – and having a blast while doing it!

Check out this this engaging episode of Design Surfaces as Andrew Green – Canva’s Head of Design delves into the fascinating world of creative technology with Jude Osborn, our Creative Technology Lead.

Goals that you’ll achieve

• Build domain knowledge of Canva’s technical stack and existing AI Research projects: Understand the technical landscape of Canva, and stacks for building prototypes using new and upcoming AI Research tech.
• Build relationships with team members and the Gen-AI Supergroup: Get to know the Creative Technology team/subspecialty and stakeholders in the Gen-AI Supergroup. Help them build and form a new working group to explore AI interfaces.
• Build AI-related prototypes: There are already many questions to answer and problems to solve in relation to how users interact with AI. Prototyping can commence even before the working group is formed.
• Tooling: Research ways to make models and APIs to accessible for prototyping.
• Craft UX prototypes: Participate in early-stage UX prototypes in order to get a feel for the type of work Creative Technologists often do to support teams during a cycle.
• Contribute to building awareness and visibility of Creative Tech across Product Design specialty & Canva – Foster collaboration among Product, Design, Engineering, and Creative Tech teams. Share knowledge amongst designers and engineers on tech applications and industry best-practice.
• Build trust with AI Researchers: Show generosity to AI Researchers by building tools and playgrounds to surface useful tech in a way that helps leadership picture it in-product. Learn how Creative Tech can best work with AI Research and report findings to the CT Team and Product Design leadership.
• Help build the Gen-AI Experiences working group: The Gen-AI Supergroup would like to set up a CT-lab for prototyping new experiences. This lab will likely include another CT, but also engineers and possibly designers.
• Tooling: Build tools and systems to make models and APIs to accessible for prototyping
• Research and keep pulse of creative and tech industry trends, and best practices -to propose, influence and inspire our teams in Canva to explore as solutions.

What we are looking for

We’re on the hunt for a tech-savvy creative who thrives at the crossroads of design and code. Someone who loves rolling up their sleeves and getting hands-on with innovative solutions. If your mind lights up when you hear the words “prototype” and “interaction design,” you’re already speaking our language.

• You have a portfolio of interaction design work built-in front-end technologies. Your portfolio isn’t just a collection of projects, It’s a testament to your ability to fuse creativity and code into engaging, interactive experiences.
• You’ve spent 6+ years honing your front-end development skills (HTML, CSS, JavaScript, React)
• At the core of this role is your wide range of technical experience, particularly prototyping with generative AI. You’ll be at the forefront of pushing boundaries, using AI to unlock new possibilities in design and user experience. Your ability to experiment with emerging technologies and quickly prototype solutions will directly shape how we evolve the creative capabilities of Canva.
• You thrive in a collaborative environment. You’ve teamed up with designers, engineers, and researchers before, and you know how to translate creative concepts into tangible solutions that tick both product and technical boxes. You’re always curious, always learning, and always eager to play with new technologies.

About the team

You’ll be part of the The Creative Technology Team – a small group of highly technical, design-led creatives. We work in an exceptionally collaborative environment, usually beside Product Designers, Marketers, Engineers and Researchers to help solve technical design and interaction problems with code.

You’ll code quick and scrappy prototypes to solve novel UX problems, build highly impactful internal design and visual communication tools, and create world-class digital and physical interactive experiences for events and Marketing and Brand.

About the Gen AI Supergroup

At Canva, we empower everyone to design, using technology to simplify challenges and enhance the enjoyable parts of the design process. Our Generative AI supergroup aims to help 1 billion people realise their dreams through innovative tech, sparking a global creative renaissance. You can see our recent launches in Magic Studio.

This is an exciting and emerging problem space with weekly innovations. Our close-knit team collaborates with engineers to prototype and develop new experiences, works with researchers to explore uncharted territories, and tackles some of today’s biggest challenges. We continuously improve our current offerings to create better ways for people to achieve their design dreams. Our goal is to create magical, emotionally engaging AI experiences that charm, simplify complex tasks, and foster meaningful connections.

What’s in it for you?

Achieving our crazy big goals motivates us to work hard – and we do – but you’ll experience lots of moments of magic, connectivity and fun woven throughout life at Canva, too. We also offer a range of benefits to set you up for every success in and outside of work.

Here’s a taste of what’s on offer:

• Equity packages – we want our success to be yours too
• Inclusive parental leave policy that supports all parents & carers
• An annual Vibe & Thrive allowance to support your wellbeing, social connection, office setup & more
• Flexible leave options that empower you to be a force for good, take time to recharge and supports you personally

Check out lifeatcanva.com for more info.

Other stuff to know

We make hiring decisions based on your experience, skills and passion, as well as how you can enhance Canva and our culture. When you apply, please tell us the pronouns you use and any reasonable adjustments you may need during the interview process.

We celebrate all types of skills and backgrounds at Canva so even if you don’t feel like your skills quite match what’s listed above – we still want to hear from you!

Please note that interviews are conducted virtually.

Job Description