One-page deck brief before any AI builds your slides

Before any AI tool builds your slides, fill in one page: who the deck is for, the one decision it asks for, a line for every slide, the named files the AI may use, an example deck for style, and the figures and names that mustn't change. Paste it in, then check the draft against it before export.

Steps follow each vendor's help pages listed under Sources, checked 21 October 2026. The Millbrook example is made up.

The brief is for one deck from one meeting, document or set of notes. If the same programme comes up every week and you're tired of explaining it, keep its standing rules in a project instead: see Set up a reusable programme brief in ChatGPT or Claude.

Give the brief to the tool you have

The brief works the same way in each tool. What differs is how you attach files and which plan or licence each step needs.

In Copilot in PowerPoint, Microsoft's steps are to start a new presentation, open Copilot Chat from the Copilot icon at the bottom right, choose a Brand Kit under Select brand if your organisation requires one, and then describe the presentation. Paste the brief there. To build from a file, Microsoft says to type / and pick it. It also says Copilot works from one file at a time: a Word file with Copilot Pro (home), or a Word or PDF file, including encrypted ones, with a Microsoft Copilot (work) licence. So name one source file in the brief, or put your notes into one Word document first.

Copilot's version of an example deck is your organisation's template or Brand Kit, and Microsoft says using your organisation's branding is only available to users licensed with Microsoft Copilot. Microsoft's FAQ adds that creating a presentation, including from a file, needs a Microsoft Designer licence as well. If Copilot or those options are missing, Microsoft says Copilot might not be included with your Microsoft 365 subscription or allowed by your organisation's settings, so ask your IT admin.

In Claude, Anthropic's help centre lists the Slides template on Free, Pro, Max, Team and Enterprise plans, on by default, and says it turned on by default for Enterprise on 15 October 2026. Artifacts, which Slides runs in, need Cloud code execution and file creation switched on. Team and Enterprise plans do that under Organization settings > Capabilities, and every other plan under Settings > Capabilities.

Then ask for the deck in any chat, or select Output in the message box and choose Slides, and attach the named files and the example deck with the brief. Anthropic says decks export to PowerPoint and PDF, or go to Google Slides as editable files. Its Claude Academy tutorial adds that sending a deck to Google Slides needs Google Drive connected, and that charts become pictures in a PowerPoint download, so check any chart slides after export. For a weekly deck from a Claude Project, see Check Instructions for Claude, then ask for one deck.

ChatGPT added its own Slides on 16 October 2026. OpenAI's release notes say ChatGPT Slides is rolling out to eligible Pro users, and to eligible Business and Enterprise users, with Space access, on the web and in the desktop app, and that you get started by asking ChatGPT in Work to create a presentation in Space. OpenAI says Slides can start from an outline as well as from your files or the conversation, and that sharing an example deck guides the style and layout, which maps straight onto the brief. On the web, it says you can export to PowerPoint or PDF, or to Google Slides. In the desktop app, it says you can open the deck in PowerPoint or Keynote when those apps are installed. If you don't see Slides yet, the rollout may not have reached your account.

Check the draft before you export or share it

Go through the draft with the brief and the source files open. Check every figure and name on the Don't change list against the file it came from, including the units and dates, and check the list the AI gave you at the end for anything that isn't in a named file. Then confirm the deck still asks for one decision, on the slide where you put it, and that the slide count matches the brief.

If one slide drifts, ask for that slide again rather than the whole deck. To see how deck tools handle a corrected budget figure or a stale date across ten messy files, run the Steering Committee Test Pack on the tool you use.

Fill in the brief before your next deck, and don't export until every figure on the Don't change list matches its source file.

Sources

OpenAI, ChatGPT release notes, entry dated 16 October 2026: Create and collaborate on slides in ChatGPT. Checked 21 October 2026.

Microsoft Support, Create a new presentation with Copilot in PowerPoint, last updated October 2026, and Frequently asked questions about Copilot in PowerPoint. Checked 21 October 2026.

Claude Help Center, What are artifacts and how do I use them?, and Claude Academy, Making slides and presentations with Claude. Checked 21 October 2026.