OpenAI acquires NextSlide and adds its founder to ChatGPT team

OpenAI bought NextSlide, a startup that developed AI technology for creating presentations. The acquisition took place earlier this year but was announced only now. The company’s team is already working on integrating the technology into OpenAI’s flagship product.

What the product does

NextSlide built a tool that can convert text, notes, documents or research data into fully editable presentations. According to founder Ahmed Beshry, the goal was to make visual communication accessible and let people express ideas clearly. With the move to OpenAI, the team continues that direction: developing AI products that help with creation and communication.

Founder background

Beshry comes from the smart-retail sector. He co-founded Caper AI, which created smart shopping carts and cashier-less checkout systems. Caper AI was acquired by Instacart in 2021. Moving from retail to presentations may seem unusual, but both involve automating manual processes.

Missing details

OpenAI did not disclose the purchase price for NextSlide. The acquisition announcement was delayed by several months, with Beshry noting on LinkedIn that the deal closed earlier this year. No details were released about the size of the team that moved to OpenAI or the timeline for embedding the technology in ChatGPT.

Where this leads

The purchase signals OpenAI’s continued expansion beyond text into visual formats. Presentation-generation capabilities could become an integral part of ChatGPT, allowing users to receive finished, editable output directly from the model. The key question is whether NextSlide’s technology will appear as a separate feature or be woven organically into the existing interface.