Gamma is an AI tool that is designed to help automate the creation of presentations and more. One of its uses is in education, something it's designed specifically for, and does a very good job of.
This tools works for creating presentations but also websites and documents, allowing teachers and students to pick their outputs when working on projects. Essentially, this speeds up the process of building presentations, not only in generating the words but also the images for the slides.
Like many AI tools, the ability to edit is there so you can make changes if the final results aren't as expected.
This guide aims to explain all you need to know about Gamma as an AI tool you can start using right now in class.
What is Gamma?
Gamma is an AI-powered presentation generator that can output in slides, documents, or webpages with very little input required beyond a written request.
Crucially, this tool can use AI to generate images too, allowing you to get an original finish that includes relevant images without the concern of any copyright infringements.
Unlike many other AI tools out there, this one will generate in-line as it processes, so you can see the points being written and images appearing as it scrolls down filling the pages. This provides a super fast overview before scrolling back up to see if it was all as you wanted -- but a nice touch to give you a preview as you go.
While this tool allows you to output in PowerPoint or PDF formats, it won't support Google Slides natively, so if that's your tool of choice, this might not be ideally suited to you. That said, the Gamma tool can be used to present, inside a browser if you want, so it doesn't have to be a prohibitive issue.
How does Gamma work?
Gamma is easy to get started with, as it runs within a website so you can access it from most devices and internet connections. You can sign up right away using an email address or a Google account. You are then asked how you want to work: Generate, for a written command; Paste in Text; or Import File or URL. Pick the output of presentation, webpage, or document, and hit Generate to get going.
In the output you can see the content being generated and along the left side the slide previews are available so you can scroll through or present with an at-a-glance view. It's possible to add comments or reactions to sections as well as to edit the text in format, style, and content.
It's also possible to edit with AI with simple requests such as "make longer" or "improve writing" as options. Or edit manually for a deeper level of control to get the exact output you want.
What are the best Gamma features?
Gamma is deeply AI-powered, which means it is smart enough to do most of the legwork of any task you have set, without you having to do much -- ultimately saving time. So you can create a more personalized and professional end result while still saving on time over traditional non-AI software.
The automated image generation using AI is a really appealing part of this software. That's not only thanks to the images being original but that there is also the ability to work with that as you need, even accessing graphics via the likes of Giphy or Unsplash, right from within Gamma.
Everything can be outputted in PowerPoint, so if you want to place the presentation on a machine for a display without the internet, that's an option. Or for sharing with students, this can be a helpful way to allow them to do so offline if needed.
The ability to remix, using AI is a really helpful. Hit the button at various stages and the AI will give you variations to things such as the theme, writing, images, and more, until you find what you like. This lets you personalize the finish but while still working at speed using the AI.
How much does Gamma cost?
Gamma offers a few options including a free plan and two payment tiers.
The Free plan gets you 400 AI credits to generate up to 10 cards, use basic image models, have unlimited gammas and users, branded PDF and PPT export.
The Plus plan, at $8/month paid annually at $96, gets you unlimited AI use, 15 cards, no "made with Gamma" badge, PDF and PPT exports, priority support and everything in Free.
Go for the Pro plan, at $15/month paid annually at $180, and you get all the above plus 30 cards, longer AI inputs, premium image models, publish to custom domains, custom fonts, detailed analytics, and password protection.
Gamma best tips and tricks
Present personally
Vary your presentation outputs to suit varying ages and abilities without costing you much extra time.
Try a website
Rather than building a presentation, try creating a website and have students interact with it as a more immersive learning experience.
Tweak manually
Don't be afraid to manually adjust the result to get it perfectly aligned with your needs. It may take longer but will likely still be faster than doing it from scratch.
