Affinity’s AI layer splitter turns a flattened PNG into a workable composition, with one catch

Released Oct 14, 2026, 1:30 PM EDT

Diana’s interest in innovation covers several years. Her preferred locations consist of customer software application, whatever Windows-related, VPNs, and graphic style tools. She’s constantly on the lookout for tools and functions that make jobs much easier, improve imagination, and enhance daily life. When she discovers something fascinating, possibilities are she’ll have something to state about it.

I do my finest to keep my files arranged, provide reasonable names, and position them in project-specific folders. However, in some cases I still mess things up. In some way, when I wish to deal with a particular variation of a style task, I can just discover a flattened PNG. All other versions? Totally editable and all set to utilize, other than the one I require.

If you’ve ever remained in this circumstance, you understand how uncomfortable it is to look for editable files and after that wind up recreating the entire thing from scratch. There are other methods around it.

Together with online tools and plugins that you can attempt to repair this issue, Affinity now includes an integrated Layer Decomposition tool. It’s expected to separate a flat image into different, editable layers. I’ll confess I was doubtful and anticipated unpleasant outputs with little to no useful functionality, however it ends up this may be an unusual case where AI makes its location in an innovative app.

Dividing flat pixel-based images into editable layers

Formed by feedback from its user base, the brand-new variation of Adobe’s primary rival crams in a series of functions and enhancements that attend to typical grievances and demands. Introduced in September, variation 3.3 brings a mix of totally brand-new functions and enhancements to existing tools.

Amongst them, there’s the long-awaited (and warmly gotten) Blend Tool, in-app scripting, much deeper RAW advancement, and the AI-supported capability to divide flat images into editable layers with Decompose Layer. Of all these, it’s the last one I wish to concentrate on today.

Affinity presents this Canva AI-powered tool under the guarantee that resulting layers will be “ready for individual editing, recompositing, or removal“If you ever lost your editable files, this will seem like a lifesaver.

Decompose Layer determines and separates components of the flattened image, properly identifying their location and function in the structure. It utilizes generative AI to anticipate and complete the parts concealed from view. It will not recuperate every aspect precisely, however it does an impressive task.

I can see its possible both for graphic style and picture adjustment. I’m doubtful when it comes to the “fully editable” claims. The tool disintegrates rasters and breaks them down into pixel layers. That’ll have some restrictions.

Utilizing Decompose Layer to choose apart visuals

2 minutes to get a sensible, premium outcome

Break down Layer isn’t part of the core, complimentary functions in Affinity. You require a Canva Pro membership to utilize it.

The procedure is as easy to use as it gets. All you need to do is pick the Canva AI mode from the Studio Switcher bar at the top, open the image you wish to divide into layers, and click the Decompose Layer icon in the upper-right panel.

Disintegrate Layer presently works on SeeDream, ByteDance’s AI image-generation and modifying design. You have 2 image quality modes: SeeDream Layerise(Ultra)and SeeDream Layerise 4K (Ultra). Affinity notes that the offered designs might alter gradually

I attempted it on a variety of images, consisting of graphics and pictures, and despite the quality or intricacy of the structure, it took around 2 minutes to procedure and break down each image. Method quicker than digging through old disk drives for editables or separating whatever by hand.

Some layers came out much better than others, however something was suddenly constant: Decompose Layer comprehends structure. What I suggest by that is that it does not slice the image into random shapes (as I cynically anticipated) or leave untidy artifacts.

Rather, it separates the image into pixel layers that make good sense: headings and text bits remain in their own layers, things are precisely determined, so is the background, and all of the aspects are nicely arranged utilizing detailed layer names.

Selecting apart clear pictures and graphics looks simple and easy. For incredibly elaborate structures, it tends to make some judgment calls and just select the most essential components in the foreground.

All enjoyable and video games up until the material filter states no

Just like other Canva AI functions, the material filter got in my method a couple of times, reluctant to choose apart initial, completely certified styles that I made myself. Canva acknowledges this issue existshowever all you can do in the meantime is report the incorrect favorable and hope it’ll do much better next time.

I didn’t see a clear pattern of what it selects not to procedure yet, although it appears most likely to decline pictures of individuals and generic/overused structures for styles. Often, if you attempt once again, it’ll go through.

You get editable pixel layers

It comprehends structure, not the things behind it

[ 19659021]Okay, now let’s concentrate on editability.

As I stated, Affinity breaks down your flat image into pixel layers. And yes, they’re editable, however just to the degree a pixel layer is. Do not anticipate to alter font styles, reword text, or change vector components.

It analyzes structure, however it will not amazingly reanimate your long-lost editable file the precise method you made it. We’re not rather there.

That stated, you can still do a bargain of modifying with the resulting layers. You can rearrange, move, erase, and resize all aspects. Mix modes, positioning, organizing, and masking all offer you manage over how the aspects look, overlap, and meshed in the structure.

Layer results likewise provide you some alternatives, such as letting you include shadows, bevels, make an item radiance, or provide it a color overlay. While you can’t modify text or vector courses, you can reorganize them and change them in terms of look. Plus, recognizing a font style and duplicating a vector shape isn’t brain surgery. And when you currently have an overview to work from and can control specific components without messing others up, the entire procedure is simpler.

A helpful repair when you’ve lost your layers

Disintegrate Layers can be a terrific method to make a flat image convenient in a brief quantity of time. Might be especially beneficial if you wish to repurpose old graphics for brand-new tasks and for fast picture control. Regardless of editability being rather minimal, you still get a lot to deal with.

Whether it’s worth spending for depends upon what your jobs tend to appear like, however despite the fact that it’s not complimentary, it’s still less expensive than Creative Cloud. There are likewise totally free online tools that provide comparable performance, so spending for it makes one of the most sense if you desire something easier and utilize other tools in the app too.