Introducing Generative Canvas: Dynamically Generated UX, Grounded in Trusted Data and Workflows

Clara Shih -

TLDR; Salesforce just released Generative Canvas for Lightning UX (Pilot) on the AppExchange, allowing users to easily visualize and interact with their business data and workflows in a completely new way.

In the enterprise app landscape, we rely on structured and trusted UI/UX elements– such as dashboards, record details, lists, and action buttons. For years, Salesforce Admins have utilized Page Layouts and Dynamic Forms to control how these components appear. Those these no-code tools have been the best available on the market, they are still time-consuming to configure and rigid. It is also nearly impossible to anticipate the full spectrum of data and workflows each user will need.

What if that complexity could disappear?

Introducing the new Salesforce Generative Canvas for Lightning UX, powered by Agentforce and LLMs. This innovative UI dynamically generates layouts that go beyond static interfaces, offering a full-screen experience enriched with tables, charts, trends, and other Lightning components.

  • Empowers CRM teams with ready access to essential information and actionable insights
  • Adapts dynamically to each user’s role and task, whether they’re typing or speaking
  • Fully secure and trusted, respecting your Salesforce instance’s data-sharing rules and permissions

AI is transforming how we generate content, code, and now enterprise UX/UI. With Generative Lightning UX, you’ll rethink how enterprise apps work, and how easy they can be to use.

How Generative AI is reshaping each layer of the software tech stack

Over the last decades, software has generally followed the Model-View-Controller (MVC) design pattern that separates an application's logic into three layers: the data model, the user interface view, and the logic controller. Generative AI is transforming every layer of the tech stack from chips to compute to MVC.

At the data model layer, Salesforce’s Data Cloud has pioneered both zero-copy data federation with partners, including Snowflake, Databricks, BiqQuery, and Redshift, and expanded to support both structured and unstructured data, such as Slack conversations, contact center transcripts, sales meeting notes, images, and videos.

At the logic layer, the Salesforce Platform has augmented our Flow low-code builders and Apex code with generative AI for flow and code generation, as well as introduced Agentforce Studio – Prompt Builder, Agent Builder, and Model Builder – to make it easy for customers to build trusted AI apps grounded in their organization’s data, policies, guardrails, knowledge, and semantics.

For the user interface layer, we’re introducing Generative Canvas for Lightning, to enhance business productivity by dynamically creating rich, interactive, and trusted user experiences and offering actionable insights.

With Generative Canvas, teams can explore data through suggestive prompts, surface key insights, and address strategic questions to achieve better outcomes. Instead of having to search and navigate a more rigid UX, sales and service reps can engage with a dynamic, intelligent experience that adapts to their specific needs and provides tailored insights for their accounts. For our Salesforce Admin Trailblazers, this also means freeing up time from having to painstakingly build every custom page layout for every role and user at your company.

A New AI-Powered Personalized Experience Paradigm for CRM Teams

Completely Personalized To Each End User

Whether you're a salesperson preparing for a critical business review or customer support manager navigating a complex operational issue, having the right context is essential. That’s where Generative Canvas comes in, designed to align with each end user’s profile, intent, and goals to provide the right guidance, visualization, and automation.

For approved pilot customers, Generative Canvas is accessible from the Seller home page or apps menu. It pulls data from the user’s calendar to give suggested prompts and relevant information tailored to their needs.

A Trust-Led Approach

When it comes to trusting AI-generated experiences, plans, flows, or other outputs, context is key. Generative Canvas is built on the new Agentforce platform, and all queries run through the Einstein Trust Layer to ensure data privacy, data security, and ethical guardrails are in place.

Rather than generating UI from pixels, Generative Canvas is grounded on your organization’s approved Lightning components and respects all of the data-sharing rules and permissions currently configured in your Salesforce instance.

Case Study: Elevating Sales Productivity with Generative Canvas


Imagine you're preparing for an important sales meeting. Generative Canvas can pull together all the key details, from account information to stakeholder insights. Start by using a suggested prompt like “Show me an analysis of the top cases on my account,” or pose your own unique question. The app quickly collects and analyzes relevant data, providing a concise summary tailored to your accounts.

Reps can dive deeper by running an AI-powered opportunity analysis or checking open cases. They can even pull in the latest news and trends that impact their accounts, and Generative Canvas then neatly organizes this information into two actionable categories:

  • Conversation Starters: With Generative Canvas, you're equipped with timely and relevant topics that help reps build rapport and deepen relationships.
  • Business Opportunities: Beyond just chit-chat, Generative Canvas helps users identify potential growth paths and collaborative opportunities that can significantly enhance their business strategy.

In addition to offering detailed account summaries and AI-curated recommendations, Generative Canvas also identifies key upsell and cross-sell opportunities and gives a comprehensive view of the competitive landscape. Features like Elevator Pitch help reps quickly hone in on the key points to convey during a sales call based on real-time internal and external data.

By bringing together these various data tables, Generative Canvas enables sales professionals to make well-informed decisions and strategically maximize each opportunity for significant impact. It’s like having a personalized command center, combining your Salesforce data with external insights to keep your teams fully informed.

That’s where Generative Canvas steps in. Instead of dealing with rigid interfaces and fragmented information, Generative Canvas dynamically generates a full-screen experience. It doesn’t just display text—it organizes key metrics using rich visual elements like tables, charts, trends, and other Lightning components. This personalized, adaptable interface allows sales teams to easily retrieve crucial insights, whether for answering customer questions in real time or preparing for an important meeting.

By aligning with each user’s role and intent, Generative Canvas ensures that sales and service teams have immediate access to relevant data and can make smarter, faster decisions. In today’s fast-paced sales environments, having the right context at the right time is essential—and with Generative Canvas, that context is always at your fingertips.

Request to Join the Pilot

During this pilot phase, Salesforce is dedicated to incorporating user feedback and further refining the capabilities of Generative Canvas. Check out the AppExchange listing where you can see a live demo and request to join our pilot program. We look forward to hearing your feedback on this groundbreaking technology!

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