Show HN: Slaide, open-source Markdown slides AI writes and PowerPoint opens
Slaide is an open-source, Markdown-based slide language designed to be written by AI and opened in PowerPoint. A single plain-text .slaide file renders to a web deck, print-ready PDF, and editable PPTX, with a YAML theme system, agent-driven workflows, and a free open-core editor.
The slide language
Presentations, handed to AI the right way.
A slide language AI can actually write. One plain-text .slaide file becomes a polished web deck, a print-ready PDF, and editable PowerPoint - from the same source.
Get started → See how it works
✓ Apache-2.0 core✓ no lock-in✓ imports your .pptx✓ Slaide for iPhone
getslaide.com
try me - it's live. ← → to flip, ⤢ to present.
RENDER TO
WORKS WITH
Apache-2.0
Star on GitHub
01 · The problem
Your model just needed a better format.
You never needed a smarter model - AI already writes a great deck; the intelligence was never the bottleneck. The format is. Ask a model for a deck and it chokes on .pptx - megabytes of brittle XML - so you get broken layouts and walls of bullet points.
Slaide flips it: Markdown for the words, a tiny YAML theme for the design - ~10 KB the same model gets right the first time. Same slide, both ways:
deck.pptx ~4.2 MB · 11k lines
>>
Builds & motion
Incremental reveals with named entrance animations and timing.
:: title ::
Layouts & slots
Route Markdown into named slots - cover, statement, two-col and your own.
[text]{.grad}
Inline styling
Theme classes for gradient fills, colour, weight and type scale.
Images & media
Images, video, audio and full-bleed backgrounds - inlined for one portable file.
??? note
Speaker notes
Notes show in the presenter overlay, never in the deck or the PDF.
Embeds & widgets
Sandboxed iframes for YouTube, Figma and live HTML/JS - themed automatically.Inline SVG
Vector art that inherits the theme’s colours via currentColor.
master: ./theme.yaml
Themes
Fonts, colours, gradients and layouts as named YAML - swap one line to restyle.
Read the language reference →
06 · The file formats
Three plain-text pieces. That’s the whole format.
A Slaide project is just text you can read, diff and own - your content in one file, the design in another, and an optional bundle that carries both anywhere.
.slaidecontent
The deck
Markdown for the words plus a tiny YAML header. Slides split on ---; :: name :: routes content into the theme’s layout slots. This is what you - or the AI - write.
---
master: ./aurora.yaml
---
:: title ::
Smart Inference
master.yamldesign
The theme
One reusable YAML master holds every design decision - fonts, color roles, gradients and the grid of each layout, all as named data. Point master: at it to restyle a whole deck.
fonts: Fraunces · Plex
layouts: cover · statement
.slaidecbundle
The shareable file
Deck, master and every asset zipped into one self-contained .slaidec. Tiny, portable and offline-ready - hand someone a single file and it just opens.
deck.slaide
aurora.yaml
assets · fonts · media
talk.slaidec - one portable file
See how a deck is structured →
07 · Themes
One deck. Any look. Reskin in a line.
A theme is a small YAML master - fonts, colors, gradients, layouts, all as named data. Swap master: and the whole deck restyles. Content never changes.
SAME DECK master: ./aurora.yaml
swap one value, restyle every slide
cafewarm · bold sans
Bold sans
lawyernavy · classic serif
Serif
ycdark · accent sans
Sans
Author a theme →
08 · Built for agents
Your AI's native presentation format.
Install the Agent Skill and the model builds a deck on its own - it writes the source, validates it, then screenshots the slides and reads them back to fix overlaps and contrast itself. Take over by hand in the editor whenever you want - it's the same plain-text file.
✓ Agent Skill for Claude Code & Codex, plus an MCP server
✓ It renders the deck to a PNG and reads it back - fixing clipped text and weak contrast unprompted
✓ Switch between AI and hands-on editing anytime - one plain-text file, no drift
Set up the agent skill →
claude · mcp
› make a 6-slide pitch for Acme
→ writing acme.slaide ✓ validate · 0 errors ✓ shoot · sheet.png → read it ✎ fixed clipped title · slide 3 ✓ export · acme.pdf + .pptx done in 5.1s · 8.7 KB source ›
09 · Open core
Open at the core. Yours to build on.
The language, CLI, themes, importers and MCP server are Apache-2.0 - fork them, extend them, ship with them. Your decks stay plain text you own, in a format that isn't going anywhere.
✓ Apache-2.0 core - fork it, extend it, ship it
✓ Plain-text decks you own - no proprietary lock-in
✓ Open desktop viewer - open & present any deck for free
Star on GitHub Read the docs
The CLI
slaide newslaide dev slaide buildslaide view slaide validateslaide export slaide importslaide compare slaide themesslaide mcp
10 · Pricing
The editor is free. AI is the upgrade.
Make and edit decks free, everywhere. Pay only when the AI does the work - for a day, or every day.
Free
$0 forever
No credit card required.
✓ The full visual editor - desktop, web & iPhone
✓ Hi-fi PowerPoint import & export
✓ Open core: language, CLI & viewer (Apache-2.0)
✓ Your first AI deck free, up to 10 slides
Best forEveryone who makes slides
Start free
Recommended
Day Pass
$3.99 once
24 hours of AI.
✓ The AI designs your decks in the browser
✓ 4 AI decks in 24 hours
✓ Nothing to install
✓ No subscription
Best forA deck due today, not next month
Try it for a day
Slaide Hosted
$9.90
$6.90 / mo
Launch price, limited time.
✓ 10 AI decks a month
✓ Cloud sync & share from the web
✓ Everything in Free
Best forAnyone making decks every month
Get Hosted
Prices in USD, excl. tax (EUR at checkout). Day Pass & Hosted live at app.getslaide.com.
Write your next deck in plain text.
Install the CLI, scaffold a deck, and render to web + PDF in under a minute.
Get started → Star on GitHub
$ npx @aivorynet/slaide new talk.slaide