Customization

Custom asset and content management

Customize asset processing, storage, and content workflows for your app.

  • Format-specific handling

    Native support for images, videos, SVGs, and text with extensible APIs for custom formats like 3D models or CAD files. Ideal for domain-specific apps with specialized content handling beyond standard web formats.

  • Flexible content recognition

    Register custom handlers that detect and transform any content type into application-specific shapes. Perfect for apps where pasted code becomes syntax-highlighted blocks or uploaded designs become interactive prototypes.

  • Extensible processing pipeline

    Define custom validation, transformation, and optimization rules for each content type. Build specialized workflows like automatic image resizing, metadata extraction, or security scanning during content import.

  • Intelligent performance management

    Customize viewport culling and asset optimization to handle large files, with size limits, progressive loading, and quality tweaks keeping the canvas responsive.


Trusted by these companies

  • bigpi
  • Google
  • Replit
  • CADChat
  • Google Stitch
  • Shopify
  • ClickUp
  • Aries
  • Genio
  • Pollination
  • JAM
  • Autodesk
  • Craft
  • Legendkeeper
  • Mobbin
  • Matilda workspace
  • Runway
  • SchoolAI
  • Luma
  • Brisk
  • Padlet
  • AlAI
  • Dirac

Skip asset complexity

Validate, transform, and store content your way. Our team spent years to get all the details right, so you don’t have to.


  • External content handler system

    The content recognition engine routes dropped or pasted content through your registered handlers. Each handler gets typed content with metadata and context, then returns shape creation instructions. Handlers can be chained for complex workflows, with priority and fallback rules ensuring everything is processed correctly.

  • Asset storage architecture

    The asset store interface abstracts storage operations behind a clean API that supports upload, resolution, and removal operations. Built-in implementations include base64 embedding for development and IndexedDB for offline applications. Custom stores integrate with cloud providers through simple async methods. The system handles temporary previews, upload progress tracking, and automatic failover scenarios.

  • Performance optimization layer

    Viewport culling skips off-screen assets while keeping selected items editable. Uploads apply size and quality adjustments automatically, generating multiple representations for zoom and display contexts. Memory is optimized through garbage collection and smart caching.


examples

See for yourself

Have a look at our examples on how to customize the UI.

  • Custom paste handler

    Build specialized content recognition that transforms pasted material into domain-specific shapes with custom validation and processing.

  • Asset store configuration

    Implement storage backends that integrate with existing infrastructure while providing transparent user experiences.

  • External content sources

    Create handlers for custom file formats with automatic recognition, validation, and shape creation workflows.

Zach Blodgett,Staff Product Managerat

"tldraw’s technology enabled us to deliver a high-quality foundation and also develop native functionality ourselves. The technology and team have been great to work with."

ClickUp modernized its whiteboard for millions of users, replacing legacy infrastructure with the tldraw SDK.


Build with a starter kit

Production ready starter kit to add a chat to your canvas. Building something different? See all starter kits

Chat starter kit

Integrate tldraw's canvas into a chat application to let the user sketch, annotate and add markup to any chat message before sending it off to an AI model or a person.

Workflow starter kit

Simplify asset handling

Support images, video, text, and custom content types without extra hassle.