GitHub Copilot adds customizable canvas extensions

GitHub’s Copilot app now offers “canvases,” a type of extension that lets users shape the interface around a specific workflow instead of fitting work into a fixed set of screens. A canvas can appear as a kanban board, issue‑triage board, release checklist, dashboard, form or even a spreadsheet, and both the user and the Copilot agent can interact with it in real time.

To create one, a user opens an agent session, runs the /create-canvas skill and describes the desired workflow, the actions they need to perform, and the actions the agent should be able to take. The agent generates the UI in the right‑hand panel without any manual coding. The initial canvas can be refined by asking the agent to add columns, filters, pull‑request data, or convert it into a checklist. Once satisfied, the canvas is saved as an extension that can be shared with a project or kept personal. Ready‑made extensions are also available through the Awesome Copilot community collection.

The bidirectional nature means that when a user clicks a button or moves a card, the change appears instantly for the agent, and the agent can make updates that surface immediately in the UI. For developers learning to build custom workflows, canvases provide a low‑code way to prototype and iterate on task‑specific interfaces directly within the Copilot environment.