OpenAI adds ChatGPT to PowerPoint

OpenAI has started rolling out a beta version of ChatGPT inside Microsoft PowerPoint, giving users a native sidebar for building, editing and reviewing slide decks without leaving the presentation app. OpenAI says the add-in can draft slides from notes, documents and spreadsheets, revise existing decks, answer questions about a presentation’s structure and help polish content while keeping slides editable. (help.openai.com) The move puts OpenAI’s own product directly into a Microsoft application that already has Copilot features. (support.microsoft.com) Microsoft separately says Copilot in PowerPoint can use either ChatGPT from OpenAI or Claude from Anthropic as selectable models when users are editing presentations. (blogs.microsoft.com) ### What exactly did OpenAI add to PowerPoint? OpenAI describes ChatGPT for PowerPoint as a “PowerPoint-native” beta experience that appears in a sidebar inside Microsoft PowerPoint. The company says it can create a first draft from source material, add or revise slides in an existing deck, explain a presentation’s story and structure, and improve a deck for a specific audience. (help.openai.com) The ChatGPT app page says users can start from notes, documents, spreadsheets, prompts or an existing presentation. OpenAI also says the tool can rewrite content, tighten hierarchy, add sections, summarize a deck’s narrative and turn screenshots into editable slides. ### Who can use it, and how is it installed? OpenAI says the beta is available globally for ChatGPT Business, Enterprise, Edu, Teachers and K-12 users, as well as Free, Go, Pro and Plus users. (support.microsoft.com) The company says installation is done from PowerPoint’s Home tab through Add-ins, where users search for ChatGPT and then sign in with an OpenAI account. OpenAI also says organizations that cannot access the Microsoft Store can deploy the add-in internally with a manifest XML file through the Microsoft 365 admin center. (help.openai.com) The help page says some organizations may need role-based access control settings enabled by an administrator before the add-in can be used. ### How does this sit alongside Microsoft Copilot and Anthropic Claude? (chatgpt.com) Microsoft says Copilot in PowerPoint already lets users choose among Auto, ChatGPT and Claude when they are in editing mode. The company says that model switcher requires a commercial Microsoft 365 Copilot subscription, and that Claude availability for enterprise customers depends on an administrator enabling Anthropic as a sub-processor. (chatgpt.com) Microsoft also says Copilot in PowerPoint is available on Windows, Mac and the web, and can create presentations, add slides, summarize decks and rewrite content directly inside PowerPoint. That means PowerPoint users can encounter OpenAI in two ways: through Microsoft’s Copilot model selector and through OpenAI’s separate add-in. (help.openai.com) ### What does the Microsoft-OpenAI deal have to do with it? Microsoft and OpenAI said on April 27 that Microsoft will continue to have a license to OpenAI intellectual property for models and products through 2032, but that the license is now non-exclusive. Both companies also said Microsoft would remain OpenAI’s primary cloud partner under the amended relationship. (support.microsoft.com) The revised terms matter because they formally leave room for OpenAI products to appear beyond Microsoft-only channels even as Microsoft keeps access to OpenAI technology in products such as Copilot. Neither company, in the material reviewed here, tied the PowerPoint add-in launch directly to a separate new commercial filing. That connection is an inference based on the companies’ published partnership terms and the product’s placement inside Microsoft software. (support.microsoft.com) ### What are the limits of the beta right now? OpenAI says the product is still being improved and that some outputs may need manual refinement. The company also warns that ChatGPT “can make mistakes,” including when editing or deleting presentation content, and says users should review claims, numbers and edits before sharing a deck. (blogs.microsoft.com) Microsoft makes a similar point on its Copilot documentation, saying different models may produce different results for the same prompt and that not all models are available in all regions or subscription types. OpenAI’s help page and app listing show the beta is already live, and Microsoft’s support pages outline the separate Copilot model-switching workflow now available in PowerPoint. (blogs.microsoft.com) The next practical step for users is installation through PowerPoint’s Add-ins menu or, for workplace deployments, through a Microsoft 365 administrator using OpenAI’s manifest file. (support.microsoft.com) (help.openai.com)