We tested the leading AI tools with a simple task to make a new client report in PowerPoint. Today, we'll discuss what works, what doesn't, and highlight Slideform's new AI tools designed just for PowerPoint.
Client reporting in PowerPoint can be tedious. The typical workflow involves copying an old deck, replacing text like the client name, and updating the charts and text manually by copying and pasting from somewhere else.
Nearly every agency and client-facing team is looking to make this process more efficient. Some enterprises have even outsourced this work to offshore teams. We've all heard about the incredible capabilities offered by Large Language Models (LLMs) like ChatGPT, Gemini, and Copilot, so today we're putting them to the test to create a monthly business review deck for a new client. Can we use AI to create, update, and automate PowerPoint presentations?
What is Slideform?
Slideform is an AI-enabled automation platform that links your business data to reports and slide decks. Upload a custom slide template or a previous report, and Slideform fills in the data. Use AI to create new charts or analysis, then insert it into the slides. Put your reports on autopilot with Slideform.
We tested the leading AI presentation makers with a simple task to make a new client report in PowerPoint. Ideally, we would like a solution that can use a previous report as a guide and update the text and data while following the same slide style and layout. The data comes from a client performance dashboard in Looker Studio. The best solutions would also have a scheduling feature so we can generate a new report each month without any manual work.
Here's a previous version of the deck that we need to modify:
ChatGPT is arguably the most well-known and capable of all the AI models out there. It is awesome at summarizing information and generating outlines for new projects.
We gave ChatGPT 4o the following prompt.
ChatGPT did pretty well! It made a new PowerPoint deck and replaced the client name and dates throughout. However, it made no attempt to change or update any of the charts and data in the deck. When we asked it how I could update the data, here's the response:
I would have to manually export the charts as PNG files and paste them into the PPT.
Bottom line: ChatGPT can copy the PowerPoint and make simple changes to text but it can't fetch data or handle more complex updates. Too bad!
Since Microsoft Copilot is supposed to work well with Microsoft Office tools, we had high hopes that it would be able to generate a new powerpoint deck for the new client. We gave it the same prompt and PPT file as input.
Copilot did almost as well as ChatGPT. It did copy the deck and replaced the client name on the first slide. But while ChatGPT updated the dates throughout the deck, Copilot did not. Copilot also has no capability to update a deck by pulling in data from other systems. It looks like we would have to upload the raw data or screenshots of the charts in order to inert that into the deck.
Bottom line: Copilot is not very helpful for updating a PowerPoint deck and cannot connect to the data we need.
We use Canva a lot for design work, so we decided to test it out for this purpose as well. We used Canva AI in Canva Pro with the same prompt and a slide design created in Canva.
The AI did create a nice-looking new deck and added the client name "VBC of America" throughout. Unfortunately, it did not use the slide design that we attached to the prompt! Even if we had liked the designs, there is no way to link or update charts and data in the Canva deck.
Bottom line: Canva AI can design a nice presentation template for you and export it to PPT, but it cannot intelligently replace or update content in an existing deck.
Similar tools: Gamma.app & Beautiful.ai are useful for generating a new, one-off presentation from a document or other content. But they are not useful for recurring reports or pulling data from a dashboard or other dynamic data source.
Slideform is a powerful PowerPoint automation tool that eliminates manual work and ensures consistency across client communications. Here’s how we used it to copy and update the client report slides.
Slideform connects directly to your data sources—including HubSpot, Tableau, Looker Studio, Google Sheets, Power BI, and more—to automatically populate your template with real-time metrics. No more exporting, copying, or pasting!
We used Slideform's Looker Studio integration to connect to the client dashboards and pull in all the charts and data for our two clients.
With Slideform, you use a standard PowerPoint deck as your report template. Start by uploading a previous version of the report. Then replace the KPIs, charts, and client-specific text with a placeholder, and Slideform will populate them dynamically. Maintaining one shared template for all clients means that reports are on-brand, professional, and always use the latest template.
We linked the client report template to Slideform as a new project. The placeholders were auto-detected and easy to match to the correct charts from the dashboard.
Slideform AI can also answer questions and perform analysis on your data, such as "How many of my keywords had more impressions this month compared to last month?". The answer can then be embedded into your PowerPoint deck and regenerated each month.
Once your data sources are connected, Slideform allows you to generate a new report in seconds. The automation engine compiles key performance data, updates visual elements, and formats slides instantly—no manual input required. In addition, you can decide which slides should be shown to which client based on criteria like client industry or product type.
Set up automated schedules so your client reports are generated before each review meeting. This ensures that your team and clients always have access to the latest, most accurate information.