# CoLateral Expansion Packs, Explained | CoLateral

Source: https://colateralai.com/blog/colateral-expansion-packs-explained

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# CoLateral Expansion Packs, Explained

A CoLateral expansion pack is one discipline's work, already built, that you add on top of a CoLateral licence you already own.

[Nic Vandewetering](/blog/authors/nic) - October 8, 2026 - 9 min read

### On this page

1. [What is a CoLateral expansion pack?](/blog/colateral-expansion-packs-explained#what-is-a-colateral-expansion-pack)
2. [What is the difference between the workspace and a pack?](/blog/colateral-expansion-packs-explained#what-is-the-difference-between-the-workspace-and-a-pack)
3. [Why do CoLateral expansion packs exist?](/blog/colateral-expansion-packs-explained#why-do-colateral-expansion-packs-exist)
4. [What does a pack actually add to the canvas?](/blog/colateral-expansion-packs-explained#what-does-a-pack-actually-add-to-the-canvas)
5. [How are CoLateral packs kept safe?](/blog/colateral-expansion-packs-explained#how-are-colateral-packs-kept-safe)
6. [Which CoLateral packs and modules exist today?](/blog/colateral-expansion-packs-explained#which-colateral-packs-and-modules-exist-today)
7. [What is CoLateral Marketing?](/blog/colateral-expansion-packs-explained#what-is-colateral-marketing)
8. [What is CoLateral Arcade?](/blog/colateral-expansion-packs-explained#what-is-colateral-arcade)
9. [Is there a CoLateral Engineering pack?](/blog/colateral-expansion-packs-explained#is-there-a-colateral-engineering-pack)
10. [Can other people make CoLateral modules?](/blog/colateral-expansion-packs-explained#can-other-people-make-colateral-modules)
11. [How have CoLateral packs developed in 2026?](/blog/colateral-expansion-packs-explained#how-have-colateral-packs-developed-in-2026)
12. [How does buying a CoLateral pack work?](/blog/colateral-expansion-packs-explained#how-does-buying-a-colateral-pack-work)
13. [Do you need a pack to use CoLateral?](/blog/colateral-expansion-packs-explained#do-you-need-a-pack-to-use-colateral)
14. [Frequently asked questions](/blog/colateral-expansion-packs-explained#faq)

The workspace itself is discipline-neutral and complete without any pack, so a pack never replaces it. It only saves you the effort of describing a workflow that someone has already made.

## Key takeaways

- A CoLateral expansion pack is one discipline's work already built, layered on a licence that is already bought.
- The CoLateral workspace (the Project Canvas, agents, terminals, sheets, notes and the ability to build a tool by describing it) is complete without any pack.
- CoLateral Marketing is the first-party pack for planning, publishing and measuring social media posts from a card on the canvas.
- CoLateral Arcade is a built-in games module that starts enabled and is switched on or off in Settings, separately from every pack.
- The CoLateral store calls these add-ons modules, and creators can submit their own modules for review.

## What is a CoLateral expansion pack?

Definition - Expansion pack: A CoLateral expansion pack is an optional add-on that brings one discipline's prebuilt work onto the Project Canvas, layered on a CoLateral licence that has already been bought. The store and the app call the same thing a module; "pack" survives in identifiers and older documents.

The idea is a split. CoLateral gives you a canvas, AI agents, terminals, spreadsheets, notes and the ability to describe a tool and have an agent build it. A pack is somebody having already done that describing for a particular kind of work, so the result arrives as a card you can open. If you are new to the product, [introducing the CoLateral blog](/blog/introducing-the-colateral-blog) explains what the canvas is.

> A pack is one discipline's work on top of the seat you already bought.

Source: Caption of the CoLateral Marketing film (social-media-pack.vtt)

## What is the difference between the workspace and a pack?

We sell two separable things, and keeping them apart is the point of the whole design.

- The workspace (the seat) is the Project Canvas, agent cards, Terminal Cards, spreadsheets, notes, schedules, the Command Centre and the ability to build a tool by describing it. It is discipline-neutral. It is a one-time licence, and the core tools open on any licence.
- An expansion pack is one discipline's work already built. It attaches to a licence you hold and never creates one: a pack without a licence runs nothing.

That is why a pack is never required. Someone who writes software, someone who runs a design studio and someone who plans a launch all get the same complete workspace. A pack is a shortcut for a specific job, not a gate in front of the product. See [/pricing](/pricing) for the licence and [/store](/store) for the modules.

## Why do CoLateral expansion packs exist?

Because describing a tool is work, even when an agent does the building. The workspace lets you say what you want, an agent builds it into a card, and you refine it. That is powerful and it is general, and the cost of generality is that the first version of anything specific still has to be asked for. For a few kinds of work it is worth someone doing that asking once, carefully, and handing over the result. That result is a pack.

It also keeps the licence honest. If the workspace were sold in slices by discipline, every buyer would be paying for a canvas shaped around somebody else's job. Because the licence is neutral and complete, the question a pack answers is narrower and easier to judge: is this finished workflow worth having instead of building my own? For some people the answer is yes, and for plenty of others the licence alone is all they will ever want.

## What does a pack actually add to the canvas?

A pack contributes cards and capabilities, and nothing else changes around them. Depending on the pack, that can be tool cards that open on the canvas like any other, a capability built into the canvas, or a pane in Settings. CoLateral Marketing, for example, has no tool pages at all: it is one canvas capability, a card that frames the app. A pack that contains several tools shows up in the tool picker grouped under its name, which is how the picker has worked since 1.0.58.

## How are CoLateral packs kept safe?

A pack that comes from somebody else has to earn trust before it runs, so the pack format is built around that. The rules are the same for modules made by other people as for ours.

- Declared permissions. A pack states what it needs, such as file access, clipboard access, notifications or an AI provider, and gives a reason for each. The app can only grant what the pack declared, and you see the request before you add it.
- Signed artifacts. The desktop app verifies a pack's signature against keys built into the app and rebuilds its digest before running it, and the content security rules it runs under come from the signed manifest.
- Review before listing. A creator submits a module and follows it through review. Approval alone does not publish it or switch on sales.
- Revocation that fails closed. If the store revokes a pack, that pack stops opening on your machine even without a network connection. It is the one place in the product that is deliberately strict, because everywhere else a missing signal should not hide your work.

These checks apply to the pack specification and its marketplace. They are one reason the store lists the creator of each module and the permissions it requests on its page.

## Which CoLateral packs and modules exist today?

This is how the [store](/store) presents each one at the time of writing. The store is the authority on availability, so check it before you plan around a module.

The modules CoLateral lists, as the store describes them.

| Module | What it adds | How the store presents it |
| --- | --- | --- |
| CoLateral Marketing (pack id content-studio, also called the Social Media Pack) | One card on the canvas to plan, publish and measure social media posts | Available now, billed monthly on top of your licence |
| CoLateral Arcade | A 3D arcade of games inside CoLateral | Built-in games module, enabled by default, managed in Settings |
| CoLateral Engineering | A module for engineering work | Listed as in development with no release date. It is not for sale |
| Creator modules | Modules made and published by other people | Reviewed before listing, with purchase options shown only where a listing is configured for sale |

## What is CoLateral Marketing?

CoLateral Marketing is the first-party pack for social content. Its store listing promises one queue for every account you publish to, a publishing pipeline that carries a post from draft to published, connected accounts held in one place, and analytics read back beside the post they belong to. It appears on the canvas as a card, opened from a button in the top-right group, and the card frames the CoLateral Marketing app running on your own machine rather than a service we host.

It arrived in the desktop app as the Social Media Pack in version 1.0.26 on 2026-08-26, and the name CoLateral Marketing was applied consistently across the app and the films in 1.0.67. Its first pack manifest is dated 2026-08-31. A fuller walk-through is in [CoLateral Marketing: scheduling and publishing from the canvas](/blog/colateral-marketing-social-media-card), and the full list of releases is in the [2026 release notes](/blog/colateral-release-notes-2026).

[Download the film: CoLateral Marketing module film](/src/assets/demos/marketing-module.mp4)

CoLateral Marketing module film. An animated introduction to CoLateral Marketing. It illustrates a draft-to-review content workflow with invented content and is not a recording of a live account.

## What is CoLateral Arcade?

CoLateral Arcade is the built-in games module: a 3D arcade you walk through, cabinet by cabinet, with its own button on the canvas. It starts enabled and runs offline on your machine. Switching it off in Settings hides its controls and existing Arcade cards without deleting your saved cards or game progress, and switching it back on restores them. The module was added on 2026-09-26 and is covered in [CoLateral Arcade: the games module](/blog/colateral-arcade-games-module).

## Is there a CoLateral Engineering pack?

The store lists a CoLateral Engineering module for engineering work as currently in development, with no release date announced. It is not for sale, and we do not describe it on the website. CoLateral is workspace software and does not provide professional engineering services.

## Can other people make CoLateral modules?

Yes, there is a path for it. The pack store arrived in the desktop app in version 1.0.34 on 2026-08-31, and in 1.0.58 creators gained the ability to submit a module that contains several tools and follow it through review. The store has a "Become a module creator" route, a section for reviewed community modules, and creator pages that list everything one person publishes. Each listing names its creator and the permissions it requests, and a module only shows purchase options when the listing is configured for sale. Browse [/store](/store) for what is listed now.

## How have CoLateral packs developed in 2026?

1. August 26, 2026 - The Social Media Pack arrives: CoLateral 1.0.26 added the Social Media Pack, with the marketing app running in a card on the canvas.
2. August 31, 2026 - The pack store arrives: CoLateral 1.0.34 added the store: browse modules made by creators, buy one on the licence you already hold, and open its tools on the canvas. Creators could sign up and submit a pack from the app.
3. September 8, 2026 - Every pack in one place: CoLateral 1.0.49 made the Packages pane in Account and Settings list every pack, with the in-app store leading with CoLateral's own modules.
4. September 15, 2026 - Packs in the tool picker: CoLateral 1.0.58 grouped the tool picker by installed pack and let creators submit a module containing several tools.
5. September 23, 2026 - Cards follow their pack: CoLateral 1.0.61 made an open pack card stop showing its page, and say why, as soon as the pack is switched off, revoked or uninstalled.
6. September 26, 2026 - CoLateral Arcade: The built-in games module was added beside the CoLateral Marketing button.

Each release is written up in the [2026 release notes](/blog/colateral-release-notes-2026).

## How does buying a CoLateral pack work?

1. Own a licence first. The licence is a one-time purchase that gives you the complete workspace. See [/pricing](/pricing) for current terms and [/download](/download) for the installers.
2. Pick a module in the store. Each module page says what is included, what permissions it asks for and how it is billed.
3. Add it to the licence you hold. A pack attaches to your existing licence. If you buy one after activating, the running copy picks it up without waiting for the next launch.
4. Manage it in Settings. The Packages pane lists every pack and lets you switch one on or off. CoLateral Arcade has its own switch.

A pack is billed separately from the licence. Cancelling a pack removes only the pack and leaves your licence alone, and the licence stays complete without it. The app shows a pack as included only when your signed licence carries it. We deliberately put no prices in this post, because they change: [/pricing](/pricing) and the module pages on [/store](/store) are always current.

A pack is added to a licence, never instead of one. Buying a pack does not give you a workspace, and not buying one does not take anything away from it.

## Do you need a pack to use CoLateral?

No. Agents, terminals, spreadsheets, documents, slideshows, notes, the Command Centre, the Browser Card and tool building are all part of the workspace. The core tools, including the Math Engine, open on any licence. Packs matter when you want a finished workflow for one kind of work and would rather open it than describe it. The FAQ answers common buying questions at [/faq](/faq).

FAQ

## Frequently asked questions

### What is a CoLateral expansion pack?

A CoLateral expansion pack is an optional add-on that brings one discipline's prebuilt work onto the Project Canvas, layered on a licence you already own. The store and the app call the same thing a module.

### Do I need an expansion pack to use CoLateral?

No. The workspace is complete without any pack. Agents, terminals, spreadsheets, documents, notes and tool building are part of the licence, and a pack only adds a ready-made workflow for one kind of work.

### Which CoLateral modules can I use today?

CoLateral Marketing is listed in the store as available now, billed monthly on top of your licence. CoLateral Arcade is a built-in games module that starts enabled and is managed in Settings. Reviewed creator modules appear in the store as they are listed.

### Can I cancel a pack without losing CoLateral?

Yes. A pack is billed separately from the licence, and cancelling it removes only the pack. Your licence and the complete workspace stay as they were.

### Can I publish my own CoLateral module?

Yes. You can turn a tool you built in CoLateral into a module, submit it for review from the desktop app and follow it through review. Start from the "Become a module creator" link in the store.

Written by

## [Nic Vandewetering](/blog/authors/nic)

Founder and CEO, CoLateral

Nic Vandewetering is the founder of CoLateral and builds the workspace in public, often live on YouTube. These posts record what changed and why.

[About CoLateral](/about)

[YouTube](https://www.youtube.com/@nicvandewetering)

[X](https://x.com/nvandewetering)

[LinkedIn](https://www.linkedin.com/in/nic-vandewetering-55358a1a5)

[Post on X](https://x.com/intent/post?text=CoLateral%20Expansion%20Packs%2C%20Explained&url=https%3A%2F%2Fcolateralai.com%2Fblog%2Fcolateral-expansion-packs-explained)

[LinkedIn](https://www.linkedin.com/sharing/share-offsite/?url=https%3A%2F%2Fcolateralai.com%2Fblog%2Fcolateral-expansion-packs-explained)

[Newer post CoLateral Arcade: The Games Module](/blog/colateral-arcade-games-module)

[Older post CoLateral goes desktop with Tauri, July to August 2026](/blog/colateral-goes-desktop-with-tauri)

## Keep reading

Product updates

### [Introducing the CoLateral Blog](/blog/introducing-the-colateral-blog)

The CoLateral blog is the written record of the all-in-one agentic workspace: release notes, history, AI model updates, expansion packs and founder notes.

Oct 8, 2026 - 4 min read

Product updates

### [CoLateral Release Notes for 2026](/blog/colateral-release-notes-2026)

CoLateral release notes for 2026: what changed in desktop 1.0.71 and each release back to 1.00, with dates, plus how signed updates reach your machine.

Oct 8, 2026 - 13 min read

Packs and modules

### [CoLateral Arcade: The Games Module](/blog/colateral-arcade-games-module)

CoLateral Arcade is the built-in games module for the CoLateral canvas: a 3D arcade built with AI agents, how to open it, switch it off and play for free.

Oct 8, 2026 - 5 min read

## Bring your next project together.

CoLateral is a desktop workspace where your files, notes, tools and AI agents share one canvas. Connect your own provider account when an agent needs one, and see how it fits your work.

[Get the desktop app](/download)

[See pricing](/pricing)