OpenAI has acquired NextSlide, a startup focused on AI-powered presentation creation, and the team is now working on ChatGPT. The acquisition was announced publicly on August 8, 2026, after closing earlier this year; financial terms were not disclosed. The move signals OpenAI's expansion into productivity tools that use its language models to support visual communication.
NextSlide's team joins OpenAI
NextSlide founder Ahmed Beshry announced the acquisition on the company's website and LinkedIn. The startup's product turned prompts, notes, documents, or research into polished, editable presentations. Beshry said the goal was to make visual communication more accessible and help people express their ideas clearly.
The team is now part of OpenAI, where Beshry said it will continue that mission, building AI products that help people create, communicate, and turn ideas into meaningful work. The acquisition adds to OpenAI's portfolio of strategic hires and technology integrations.
Beshry's background
Beshry is a serial entrepreneur. He previously co-founded Caper AI, a smart cart and cashier-less checkout startup that Instacart acquired in 2021. His experience building AI-driven products for retail and now presentations brings a practical, user-focused approach to OpenAI's product development.
What changes for ChatGPT
NextSlide's technology will be integrated into ChatGPT, strengthening the platform's ability to generate presentation-ready content. For users, this could mean workflows where ChatGPT drafts text and also structures and designs slide decks directly.
The acquisition underscores a broader trend of AI companies moving beyond text generation into multimodal and visual communication aids. It also puts ChatGPT in the same market as Microsoft PowerPoint's AI features and other specialized presentation software.
Why this matters for PR and communications professionals
Decks are a core part of PR work: client briefing materials, campaign recaps, new business pitches, and crisis statements. If ChatGPT can structure and design slide decks, the job shifts from building slides from scratch to editing and refining what the AI produces. That changes how quickly teams can turn ideas into client-ready materials.
The acquisition also signals that visual communication tools are a priority for the AI companies building the platforms professionals use. PR professionals who know how to direct AI to create a well-structured deck will have an advantage as these capabilities arrive in the tools they already work with.
Your membership also unlocks:
