The power of Flourish as a data storytelling tool lies in large part in how customisable it is - thanks to a rich editor and the data storytelling best practices baked into every aspect of the product.
But with great power comes - sometimes - great complexity and a lot to unpack. This is why we are introducing the Flourish Assistant, an AI chat panel built into the Flourish editor.
You can describe to the assistant what you want to achieve, and it will make the necessary changes to the chart for you. You can also pick its brains for data storytelling best practices and suggestions.
Just type make the chart dark mode, add a source, check accessibility — and the assistant applies the change directly, spelling them out clearly and highlighting the settings that changed.
Transparent, supportive and highly explanatory, the Flourish Assistant is not replacing the data storyteller - it empowers them to deepen their knowledge and experiment, making the tedious easy.
In this article
Intro to the Flourish Assistant
- 1
-
You can access the Flourish Assistant by clicking on the Assistant button on the top left corner of the screen.
- 2
-
You can then ask the Assistant to make style changes to your chart, edit titles and labels, add sources, fine-tune the layout, run accessibility checks, or offer suggestions for improving your visualization.
- 3
-
In our example, we start by asking to highlight only one line of our data.
- 4
-
It then implements the change and, importantly, explains what it did.
Clickable settings and undoing changes
- 1
-
The setting that is highlighted in blue is clickable, and the assistant will highlight and surface where the setting lives in the editor.
- 2
-
You can also undo the latest change by clicking the undo button. The undo functionality is key - ensuring control, which most LLMs miss.
At the moment, you can only undo the most recent set of changes you made with the assistant.
- 3
-
The Flourish Assistant can also suggest changes, such as adding a title, showing data labels or adding highlights.
Prompts/Use cases
Color is the most powerful tool in data visualization — and often underused. The right palette makes a chart instantly readable; the wrong one creates confusion, breaks brand guidelines, and falls apart in dark mode.
These four prompts use the Flourish Assistant to take color from an afterthought to a deliberate storytelling decision.
- 1
-
Define color overrides for specific categories
Custom color overrides pin a specific color to a specific category in your dataset. This is essential for project work consistency, categories associated with specific colors, and for charts that are updated regularly.
Set META, AMAZON, APPLE, NETFLIX, and GOOGLE to their prominent brand colors.
- 2
-
Add a color highlight in the title or subtitle
A single or few accent color against a neutral background is one of the most effective ways to direct attention in a chart. This creates instant visual hierarchy, bringing more clarity to the chart’s focus.
Highlight Netflix and Meta while maintaining brand colors.
- 3
-
Add a color highlight in the title or subtitle
Flourish supports HTML markup in titles, including the <mark> tag, which wraps a word or phrase in a colored highlight directly in the headline. It's a technique that lets you visually connect a keyword in the title — like a company name or a year — to its color in the chart, reinforcing the story at a glance.
Highlight Netflix and Meta in the title using <mark>, with each highlight matching the brand color and maintaining good text contrast.
- 4
-
Adjust colors for dark mode
Switching a chart to dark mode isn't just changing the background — it requires rethinking every color in the chart. Text needs to be light, series colors need enough contrast against a dark surface, and subtle greys that read fine on white become invisible on black.
These prompts handle the full set of changes in one instruction.
Adjust this chart for dark mode.
- 5
-
Convert to light mode
Dark mode charts don't always land in the right context — a report, a slide deck on a white background, or a webpage with a light theme.
Converting to brighter use cases is just as involved as the opposite: backgrounds, text colors, axis lines, and series colors all need to be reconsidered for readability on a light surface.
Switch this chart to light mode.
Find more useful prompts, best practices, and guidance for the Flourish Assistant here.
Flourish Assistant FAQs
Is there a cost to the Flourish Assistant? Are there usage limits tied to a plan?
Yes. Assistant usage is based on credits, and the limit depends on your Flourish plan.
Free plans include a basic use limit, Presenter plans include a standard use limit, and Publisher and Enterprise plans include a fair use limit. If you’re close to running out of credits, Flourish will let you know in the Assistant panel. The limits reset daily.
Why can't I find the Assistant in my account?
If you are part of a company account, your admin may need to enable AI-powered features for your organization first. You will also not be able to see the Assistant if AI-powered features are disabled at either your individual account or company level.
The Assistant is available for Flourish templates in our template chooser, but it is currently not available for custom templates.
Which AI model powers the Flourish Assistant?
The Assistant is powered by Claude Haiku. Check our help doc for more information.
Is any personal data shared with AI providers?
No customer data is retained by AI providers. The Assistant uses AI to understand your request and apply changes in the Flourish editor, with processing handled through Canva's infrastructure and zero data retention at the provider level.