ChatGPT can now turn your notes into slide decks: check the numbers before you send one

By Jason Sibley

What happened

On Friday 16 October 2026, OpenAI added Slides to its ChatGPT release notes. You can create a presentation, then keep working on it with your team in Space, the part of ChatGPT that keeps your Pages and files together. Start from a conversation, some files or an outline. You can also share an example deck to guide the style and layout.

Once the deck exists, you can edit the slides yourself or ask ChatGPT to change them, and you can generate images or add your own. Teammates can edit the same deck in real time and leave shared comments. On the web it exports to PowerPoint, PDF or Google Slides. In the desktop app, you can open the deck in PowerPoint or Keynote if they're installed.

Slides is rolling out to eligible Pro, Business and Enterprise users with Space access. Free, Go and Plus aren't listed. OpenAI says that if you don't see it yet, it may not be available for your account, and its pages don't name countries, so check your own.

There's a Windows catch. On devices without a required component, the desktop app makes ordinary PowerPoint (.pptx) files instead of shared Slides, and Windows 10 doesn't support it. Use ChatGPT on the web instead.

Also on 16 October, the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) proposed designating Microsoft with strategic market status in business software, which includes PowerPoint and, increasingly, Copilot. It's consulting before a final decision, due by February 2027. The findings are provisional and designation doesn't assume wrongdoing. One thing the CMA wants to examine is whether customers can freely choose the AI tools they want, and whether rivals compete with Copilot on a level playing field. Nothing changes in your Microsoft licence today.

Sources: OpenAI, ChatGPT release notes, OpenAI Help Center, Creating and collaborating on slides in ChatGPT, GOV.UK, CMA takes first steps to ensure choice in business software

What it means for a small business

Decks are the job that sits on the list for weeks. Slides could give you a first draft of a sales proposal or a staff training deck from notes you already have. The monthly figures for the bank could start the same way. Hand it an old deck you like and it follows that style, then export to PowerPoint or Google Slides and carry on as normal.

The catch is the polish. A deck that looks finished is easy to send without checking, and its numbers and claims can be wrong. OpenAI says to review the text, figures and layout before you share or present.

Sharing needs care too. Anyone you share with can edit, because comment-only access isn't available at launch. And customer details typed onto a shared deck are visible to everyone who has access.

The CMA news is a UK reminder that choosing and mixing AI tools is now a live question. If you already pay for Microsoft 365 Copilot, know what you get for that money before you add another tool for the same job. For anything about your contracts, check with your adviser.

What you can do this week

1. Look for Slides in ChatGPT Work and Space. If you're on a Business plan, ask whoever runs your workspace.
2. Try it on one real but low-stakes deck, such as a monthly update. Give it your notes and an old deck as the style guide.
3. Check every price, date and figure before the deck goes to a customer. If you export it, open the file and look it over first.
4. Share for editing only with people who should change it, and keep customer personal data off shared decks.
5. If you pay for Copilot as well, agree which tool the team uses for decks so you aren't paying twice.

How we can help

If you'd like a second pair of eyes, our free website help and AI sales & marketing desk can look at how your proposals and follow-ups fit together. We also run SMB AI sessions if you'd rather work through it with your team in the room.