Free alternatives · Video, slides and media
SlideDeckMaker
Turn a prompt, a document or a URL into a deck you can keep editing in PowerPoint, with every number traced to your source.
A free alternative to Gamma, built by Surge Software. Free. You pay only what third-party services cost us, at cost.
Live at slidedeckmaker.com
Walkthrough
See SlideDeckMaker in action
The problem
What it solves for a business
For: Founders building pitch decks and data rooms, consultants and agencies working on client templates, sales teams, and small businesses and educators who make decks often.
- AI decks fall apart when exported to PowerPoint: layouts shift, each line becomes its own box, or slides turn into images.
- AI slide tools add numbers that are not in our documents, and we cannot tell which ones are real.
- Brand templates, analytics and custom domains sit behind the higher paid plans.
How it works
SlideDeckMaker, step by step
- 01
Start from anything
Type a prompt, upload a PDF, DOCX, PPTX, Markdown or CSV file, or paste a URL.
- 02
AI writes the outline
Surge's own Qwen model writes the slides, and code checks slide count, length and numbers before they are used.
- 03
Smart layouts
One of 16 layouts is picked for each slide and text is auto-fitted; charts are built from your data values, not typed by the AI.
- 04
Edit with commands
Use 11 one-click commands or free text on one slide or the whole deck, move blocks freely, and work with others live.
- 05
Present, share and export
Present with notes and a timer, share a link with per-slide analytics, or export native PPTX, PDF, PNG, HTML or MP4.
Comparison
SlideDeckMaker vs Gamma
| SlideDeckMaker | Gamma | |
|---|---|---|
| Price | Free. You pay only what third-party services cost us, at cost. | Plus $12/month, Pro $25/month (est., checked 24 Oct 2026) |
| Extra AI | Our own GPU AI is free; nothing to top up unless a paid engine runs | $6 per 1,500 credits, paid plans only |
| Editable PPTX export | Native placeholders, real bullets, native charts and tables, notes | Users report text exported line by line and some slides as images |
| Company .pptx template | Import the brand and export onto your own slide master | Imports content, not the master |
| Numbers traced to source | Every number traced to a quote in your upload; untraced numbers removed | Community reports of unsourced statistics |
| Charts from data | Exact values, native PowerPoint charts | Basic |
| Brand kits and share analytics | Included free | Pro plan |
| Pitch-deck scoring | Investor checklist and data-room score | Not offered |
Gamma details are taken from its public website and may have changed since ($12/month Plus, $25/month Pro (estimates from Oct 2026 price trackers; gamma.app/pricing could not be read; checked 24 Oct 2026)).
Why switch
Advantages over Gamma
PowerPoint that stays editable
Exports use real placeholders, bullets, charts and tables. Six test decks were reopened, edited and saved in PowerPoint and python-pptx.
No made-up numbers
Faithful mode matches each number to your file, for example "₹6 Cr" to "6 crore", shows the quote and drops anything it cannot find.
Your own template, both ways
Import a company .pptx as a brand kit, then export new decks onto that company's own slide master.
Free, with costs shown
The product is free. Claude fallback and Sarvam engines are charged at their list price from a prepaid balance; with no balance the free path runs.
Features
What it does today
- Prompt, document (PDF, DOCX, PPTX, MD, TXT, HTML, CSV) or URL to deck, doc or one-page website.
- Native, editable PPTX: real title placeholders, real bullets, native charts and tables, speaker notes; checked by reopening and editing in PowerPoint and python-pptx.
- Faithful-to-source mode: each number is traced to the exact quote in your upload, and numbers that cannot be found are removed and listed.
- Company template import: upload a .pptx and its colours, fonts, background and logo become a brand kit; export back onto your own slide master.
- Charts from CSV or pasted tables with exact values, exported as native PowerPoint charts.
- 11 one-click AI commands per slide plus free text, and deck-wide commands such as "make every slide shorter".
- Live collaboration with comments, presenter mode with notes and timer, version history, and share links with per-slide time and completion analytics.
- Pitch-deck scoring (12-section investor checklist) and data-room readiness scoring, plus a REST API with keys (/api/v1).
Use cases
How teams use SlideDeckMaker
Seed pitch deck
A founder uploads a board report and revenue CSV, gets a pitch deck where every figure is traced, and checks the investor score.
Consultant on a client template
A consultant imports the client's .pptx and exports each new deck onto the client's own slide master.
Sales deck with tracking
A sales rep sends a share link and sees time spent on each slide and how far the buyer read.
Report to deck
An analyst drops a 15-page PDF and gets a condensed deck with native charts to finish in PowerPoint.
Under the hood
Where AI is used, and where it is not
The model
Surge's own GPU running Qwen (qwen3.8-27b) first. Claude Sonnet 5.5 (Opus 5.5 for hard jobs) only when the local model errors, times out or fails a guard. If neither is available, a rules engine builds decks offline.
Rules and code
Code decides chart values, number tracing, layout, scoring and export. Guards check the output schema, slide count, item length and that no invented numbers appear in faithful mode.
People in the loop
The user reviews and edits every slide, sees the list of numbers removed in faithful mode, and chooses when to share or export.
Book a working session
A working session with our architects on one of your use cases. You bring a process and sample documents; we leave you with a scoped plan: model, hosting, integrations, timeline and cost range.