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Field Guide · level 5 · Office work, by task

How do you make a deck with AI that still says what you mean?

Your message first. Let AI build. Then cut hard and check every figure.

5 min · try it 10 min · as of Oct 2026
Bring this to your team · Team workshopsI can run a hands-on session on your team's real decks. Get in touch
01

Fourteen slides, very fast

It made 14 neat slides. Slide 9's figure comes from no file.

02

Your message first

Before any slide, write the one thing they must leave with. Then three to five points, a source for each.

03

The title test

Ask for slide titles only and read them alone. If they tell your story, the deck will.

04

Then let it build

Now it builds the slides from the attached sources only. It will be generous.

05

Now cut hard

AI is good at adding. Your job is taking away: fewer slides, half the words.

06

Trace every figure

Find each figure, chart and quote in its source. A neat chart with no source is a well-designed guess.

07

Fewer slides. Your message.

You bring the message and the sources. AI builds. You cut and check.

Try it · 10 minutes · on your own work

Three slides, then the check

Public or made-up material only.

  1. Write the brief below: one line, three points, a source each.2 min
  2. Ask for titles only. Fix the story.3 min
  3. Ask for the first three slides.3 min
  4. Find every figure in its source. Count the fixes.2 min

The deck brief

Message: [the one thing they must leave with]. Points: [point 1], [point 2], [point 3], each from [its source]. Audience: [who]. Length: [how many] slides. First, give me the slide titles only.

Good looks likeEvery figure found in its source. The count tells you how much checking your next deck needs.

In your assistant · as of Oct 2026 · Claude, ChatGPT, Gemini

Make it in your tool

My pick for slides: Claude first. Menus move often, and plans differ.

  • CheckYour company approves it
  • CheckTitles first
  • CheckFiles you trust

Attach only files your company allows, and let AI edit only files you trust.

Claude

Claude Slides, in any conversation

Make
OutputthenSlides

Or just ask for Claude Slides. Every plan, Free included. Edit slides directly, or ask Claude.

Export
Export

PowerPoint, PDF or Google Slides.

Template
Claude for PowerPoint

Builds from your template, so open it first. Pro, Max, Team and Enterprise.

Slides needs “Cloud code execution and file creation” on, in Settings > Capabilities, or by your admin. In Google Slides (Claude for Google Workspace, beta), its charts are images that do not update.

ChatGPT

ChatGPT Work makes decks

Make
ChatthenWork

Add your files, describe the outcome, and ask for titles first. Ask for changes in the same chat.

PowerPoint
HomethenAdd-insthenChatGPT

Add it, sign in. Every plan, limited on Free and Go. Duplicate the file first.

New
ChatGPT Slides

New on 16 Oct 2026, rolling out to Pro, Business and Enterprise. Ask Work for a presentation in Space; share an example deck to set the style.

Work runs on desktop, web and phone from Plus.

Gemini

Gemini in Google Slides

Make
Ask GeminiorHelp me create a slide

Type @ and a file name to build from your Drive files. New slides use your current theme.

Check
Sources

Shows which files it used. Then click Insert.

Task
Task

A task can make a PowerPoint or Google Slides deck: personal accounts with Google AI Pro or Ultra, not in the EEA, Nigeria, Switzerland or the UK.

Gemini in Slides needs an eligible Google Workspace or Google AI plan.

Quick check · three questions

Did it stick?

  1. 1What do you write before AI makes a slide?

    The answer: A Only you can supply the message and the sources.

  2. 2The AI made 14 slides that look finished. What next?

    The answer: C Looking finished is not being right.

  3. 3Claude made a chart in Google Slides, then the numbers change. What happens?

    The answer: B Anthropic's page says these charts are inserted as images, not linked Sheets charts. Ask Claude to regenerate the chart instead.
0 of 3 answered
A strict company templateSide note
Try GPT-6 Astra in ChatGPT Work (Plus, Pro and Business). OpenAI calls it its “best model for adhering to existing templates”. That is OpenAI's own claim.
Which modelSide note
My advice: in Claude, use at least Sonnet 5.5 at High or Extra high effort, or Opus 5.5 at High (not on Free).
Template and notes, lastSide note
Move the deck into your company's template (with an add-in, start in it). Write the speaker notes last, and check them too.
Sources, checked 16 Oct 2026Source

Product details as of Oct 2026, each checked on the vendor's own page on 16 Oct 2026. Recheck by 16 Nov 2026. The examples in the pictures are made up for this lesson.

Free kitThe AI Fact-Check KitBring this to your teamTeam workshops · Get in touchBack to level 5, Office work, by task

Your message first. Let AI build. Then cut hard and check every figure.

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