New Express mobile app from Adobe integrates Firefly generative AI

Introducing a new software for iOS and Android smartphones, Adobe Express is a cloud-based mobile design platform that offers desktop users the same creative, editing, and generative AI tools powered by Firefly. The new Adobe Express app, which is now available for free in beta, makes it simple for users to create creative assets like posters, social media posts, and website banners. Users who are a part of Creative Cloud can access and edit Photoshop and Illustrator files straight within the mobile app.

The Adobe Express beta is available for free download, and while the program is being tested, Premium features like the erase and remove background tools-which will eventually need a $9.99 monthly subscription-are available without charge. However, Firefly-powered generative AI features like Text to Image effects and Generative Fill will need Adobe’s generative credits. Users of the Adobe Express beta program will get 25 credits every month. When the mobile app is widely accessible, the quantity of credits that users receive each month will depend on their subscription tier.

Users of Adobe Express will not initially be able to view their projects from the previous mobile app in the new beta version. Ian Wang, vice president of product at Adobe Express, told The Verge that when the new app comes out of beta, all the old app’s historical data will be transferred over in a smooth transition.

If you’re using the beta app, collaborative workflows have been reinstated, enabling teams to collaborate on the same creative projects on desktop and mobile devices. The new Express mobile beta is built on the same infrastructure as the desktop version that underwent updates last year. These functionalities are not available to users of the Adobe Express mobile app that is currently available.

While generative AI features handle data in the cloud rather than on-device, not all smartphones are compatible with the latest beta. A list of compatible devices is available here. For Android users, the Adobe Express mobile app beta is accessible through the Google Play Store; however, iOS users will have to register here because of Apple’s limitations on the quantity of beta testers.

Since September 2023, Adobe’s Firefly AI features have been accessible as stand-alone web applications (which are also highly accessible on mobile devices). While these apps are suitable for experimentation, integrating them into design workflows is a pain. In contrast, Canva, a competitor design platform, does not yet offer its own “Magic Studio” AI features to mobile users. The new Express beta, on the other hand, is the first mobile app to include them alongside other creative tools.