I Just Discovered Gamma and I'm Never Making Slides the Hard Way Again
Read my full article to learn how you can use Gamma to make presentations that will impress your audience in just minutes.
The LinkedIn post that changed how I think about creative AI tools forever…
Last week, I saw a post from my mentor Diana announcing she'd just joined Gamma's product team.
My first thought? "Diana's brilliant. If she joined them, this product must be special."
My second thought? "I keep getting ads for this thing, and I have SO many presentations to build. Will this actually save me from hours of formatting hell? More importantly, will it help me stand out?"
Spoiler alert: Yes. And double YES!
This article breaks down how I use Gamma as a key part of my 10x PM toolkit and how you can evaluate and adopt tools like this in your own workflow.
✅ Want to see Gamma in action? I took a draft of this very article and dropped it directly into Gamma with minimal edits. In under 7 minutes, I had a clean, presentation-ready deck.
🔗 View the Gamma deck here
Yes, Gamma made this awesome slide and generated the image on the right all by itself. Mind blown yet?
First, What Is Gamma?
Gamma is a next-gen presentation and document builder that uses AI to turn messy ideas into clean, visually compelling narratives. Think of it like Notion meets PowerPoint, but with a built-in AI designer, copy editor, and productivity assistant.
It’s one of the most valuable tools in my workflow—not because it replaces me, but because it accelerates how quickly I can go from rough idea to polished artifact. It’s like having a scrappy creative agency in your pocket, or a summer intern who actually gets it.
The 7-Minute Miracle (With Receipts)
Here's what my typical presentation process looks like now:
Minutes 1-5: Brain-dump ideas into Google Slides (no formatting)
Minutes 6-7: Upload to Gamma, let AI work its magic
Minutes 8-17: Final polish and storytelling refinements
Total time for a solid first draft: 17 minutes. (Used to take me 3-4 hours.)
Want proof this actually works? I took this very article and turned it into a presentation deck in under 7 minutes: 🔗 See the live Gamma deck here
Go ahead, click it. I'll wait.
Pretty wild, right? But here's the thing most people get wrong about AI tools...
Why People Get Bad Outputs Using AI Tools
They treat AI like a magic wand instead of a power tool.
Bad approach: "AI, make me a presentation about quarterly results."
Good approach: "I have rough ideas. Help me structure and polish them."
The difference? You stay in the driver's seat.
My Secret 3-Step System (Steal This)
Step 1: The Brain Dump
Open Google Slides. Black text, white background. No formatting allowed.
Just vomit your ideas onto slides:
Rough bullet points
Half-formed thoughts
Tables of random data
Screenshots from Slack
Whatever's in your head
The goal: Capture ideas before they disappear. Polish comes later.
Pro tip #1: I literally copy-paste entire ChatGPT conversations into slides at this stage. Gamma will clean it up.
Pro tip #2: If you’re feeling particularly lazy, just copy paste an entire block of text into Gamma’s ingestion system. It will do the magic for you. That’s what I did for the Gamma presentation.
Step 2: The AI Magic (2 minutes)
Upload your mess to Gamma. Watch it:
✨ Structure your scattered thoughts
🎨 Apply beautiful formatting automatically
✍️ Rewrite rambling text into clean copy
📊 Turn ugly tables into elegant visuals
This is where the magic happens. Your brain dump becomes... a real presentation.
Note: I pay for Gamma Pro ($8/month) so I can upload 20+ slides at once. Best $8 I spend every month.
Step 3: The Human Touch (10 minutes)
AI got you 80% there. Now you finish the job:
Sharpen headlines: "Problem Statement" → "Why 60% of Our Users Are Leaving"
Add your voice: Remove corporate speak, add personality
Check the story: Does each slide build toward your conclusion?
Preserve insights: Make sure AI didn't smooth over your best ideas
This is where 10x PMs separate from everyone else. We don't just accept AI output—we improve it.
The Numbers Don't Lie
Here's what this system has done for my productivity:
Old Way: 80% of my time was spent on formatting
New Way: I can spend that 80% (or less) on content and clarity of thought
Real talk: This isn't just about speed. It's about having the energy to actually think about your content instead of wrestling with slide layouts until 2 AM.
But Wait—Is This Actually Good?
Valid question. Let me address the elephant in the room:
"Doesn't AI make everything generic?"
Only if you let it. Here's my rule: AI handles the grunt work (formatting, structure, basic copy). I handle the insights, the nuance, the stuff that actually matters.
"What about authenticity?"
My ideas. My insights. My voice. AI just helps me get them across better. It's like having a really good editor—they don't change what you're saying, they help you say it clearer.
"Isn't this cheating?"
Is using Excel cheating at math? Is using Figma cheating at design?
Tools evolve. Smart people evolve with them.
What Gamma Gets Right
✨ Magical Cold Start: Turns messy, unstructured content into structured slide narratives
📐 Fast Iteration on Layouts: Layouts adapt quickly so you can explore different visual flows
✍️ Clean Editing UX: Edits adjust automatically without breaking your flow
🤖 Useful AI Assistant: Great at summarizing, structuring, and formatting longform content
📊 Structured Output from Raw Input: Handles bullets, tables, even unformatted docs gracefully
🔁 Google Drive Integration: Upload/export with Google Slides is smooth
🎨 Smart Visuals: Converts basic notes into elegant, on-brand slides
Opportunities: Where Gamma Could Go Further
1. Feedback on Slide Quality
Not just formatting—insight-level critique.
“This slide is too fluffy.”
“You’re missing a competitor slide.”
2. Data-Aware Intelligence
Flag mismatched metrics, help estimate benchmarks.
“$1.2M ARR / 200 customers = $6K ACV—low for enterprise.”
3. Visual Layout Recommendations
Suggest better slide types based on context: 2x2s, timelines, funnels, etc.
4. Drag-and-Drop UX
Currently a bit sticky. Should feel more like FigJam or Figma.
5. Action-Oriented Title Nudges
Push users toward clear, persuasive headlines.
“Strategy” → “How We’ll Win in 2025”
6. Diagram Enhancements
Basic visuals work, but I’d love smart templates for:
Stakeholder maps
Value chains
TAM pyramids
7. “Vibe Picker” for Deck Tone
Let users set tone up front:
“Investor Pitch”
“Netflix Trailer”
“Board Meeting”
8. Clearer Pro Tier Value Prop
What does “Pro” really unlock? Better UX or just higher volume? Pricing should reflect value, not just capacity.
9. Real-Time Collaboration (To Test)
If multiplayer editing works like Notion or Figma, Gamma could be a top-tier async collab tool.
Your 15-Minute Challenge
Want to test this system? Here's your homework:
Pick a topic you need to present (strategy review, project update, anything)
Set a timer for 5 minutes and brain dump in Google Slides
Upload to Gamma and let it work its magic
Spend 10 minutes polishing the output
Send it to someone and ask: "Would this pass the exec test?"
Seriously, try this. Then reply and tell me how it went.
The Bigger Picture
This isn't really about Gamma. It's about a mindset shift.
Old PM mindset: "I need to do everything myself to maintain quality."
New PM mindset: "I need to focus on the highest-leverage work and delegate the rest."
In 2025, the most successful PMs won't be the ones who resist AI tools—they'll be the ones who use them better than everyone else.
We're not getting replaced by AI. We're getting replaced by PMs who know how to use AI.
One Last Thing...
Shoutout to Diana Kimball Berlin on the Gamma Product team for inspiring me to push this tool to its limits. If you work at Gamma and you're reading this—Diana's awesome, and you should listen to her ideas. 🙌
AND if you want to try Gamma, use my referral link here to help me keep making awesome content, while not having to pay for my new favorite AI tool!
What do you think? Have you tried Gamma or similar tools? What's your biggest presentation pain point?
Hit reply and let me know—I read every response.
P.S. If this was helpful, forward it to a PM friend who's still fighting with PowerPoint at 1 AM. They'll thank you.
P.P.S I recently discovered that
also has a Substack. Check out for her latest thinking!New here? I write about product management, AI tools, and how to 10x your career without losing your mind. Subscribe for free to get tactical advice like this every week.
Disclaimer
The views and opinions expressed in this article are my own and do not reflect the views of any current or past employer. This content is independent and intended for educational and professional development purposes only.
Keywords
AI tools for PMs, product management, Gamma app, AI productivity, slide deck automation, storytelling, async communication, job interviews, AI workflows, 10x PM, Substack, product teardowns, AI-native PM, productivity stack