The-Utopia-Studio/pitch-deck

Pitch Deck Skill

Build investor-ready pitch decks from raw materials — meeting notes, uploaded decks, DD reports, and strategy docs — and output as branded PPTX.

This skill is built for The Studio (Utopia Capital). The default audience is co-investors and syndicate partners. When helping portfolio founders build their own decks, adapt the branding and voice accordingly.

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Before You Start

1. Read the pptx skill: view /mnt/skills/public/pptx/SKILL.md — then read pptxgenjs.md for from-scratch creation
2. Read references/slide-frameworks.md — Global Context and Growth Flywheel frameworks (the two signature slides)
3. Read references/slide-best-practices.md — research-backed guidance for every slide in the deck
4. Read references/scoring-rubric.md — the 15-dimension scoring framework (score inputs and outputs)
5. Read assets/utopia-branding.md — Studio brand defaults
6. If a DD report exists or is mentioned, read references/dd-integration.md for extraction patterns

All reference paths are relative to this skill's directory.

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Step 1: Ingest Source Materials

Read and parse everything the user provides. Typical inputs:

• Granola meeting notes — founder call transcripts; extract claims, metrics, positioning, and team context
• Uploaded pitch decks (PDF/PPTX) — use markitdown or the pdf-reading skill to extract content; note what's strong and what's missing
• Technical DD reports — if available, pull key findings, risk flags, and technology assessments (see references/dd-integration.md)
• Ad-hoc docs — strategy briefs, financials, brainstorm notes, Notion exports

From these materials, extract and organize:

| Category | What to find | |----------|-------------| | Company basics | Name, stage, what it does, founding date | | Problem | Pain points, market gaps, why now | | Solution | Product, differentiators, technical approach | | Market | TAM/SAM/SOM, growth rates, industry dynamics | | Traction | Users, revenue, partnerships, milestones | | Team | Founders, key hires, relevant domain expertise | | Business model | Revenue streams, pricing, unit economics | | Financials | Burn rate, runway, projections | | The ask | Funding amount, use of funds, milestone targets | | Competitive landscape | Named competitors, positioning, moats |

If critical data is missing, ask specific questions before generating. Never fabricate metrics, financials, or traction numbers. Use [NEEDS INPUT] placeholders for gaps the user must fill.

Score the Input Materials

After ingesting all source materials, score them using the 15-dimension framework in references/scoring-rubric.md. Present the input scores to the user before generating the deck — this sets expectations about what the source materials support and where research or user input is needed to improve the output.

For any dimension scoring 6 or below, flag it immediately and ask for additional information or approval to research.

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Step 2: Research Industry Context

Supplement the user's materials with current market intelligence using web search:

• Industry trends — recent developments, growth forecasts, regulatory shifts
• Competitive landscape — key competitors, recent rounds, positioning moves
• Market sizing — validate or source TAM/SAM/SOM from credible reports
• Investor sentiment — what matters to investors in this space right now

Cross-reference any numbers from the source materials against public data. Flag discrepancies for the user rather than silently correcting.

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Step 3: Structure the Deck

The standard co-investor deck follows this sequence. Adapt based on what the materials contain — not every company needs every slide, and some need extras.

Standard Investor Deck (12–15 slides)

| # | Slide | Purpose | |---|-------|---------| | 1 | Title | Company name, tagline, round context | | 2 | Global Context | Three structural forces — see references/slide-frameworks.md | | 3 | Problem | Pain point with data validation | | 4 | Solution | Product overview, key differentiators | | 5 | Product | Features, architecture, demo flow | | 6 | Market Opportunity | TAM/SAM/SOM with cited sources | | 7 | Business Model | Revenue streams, pricing, unit economics | | 8 | Traction | Metrics, growth trajectory, key milestones | | 9 | Growth Flywheel | How the business scales + defensible moats — see references/slide-frameworks.md | | 10 | Competition | Positioning matrix, structural advantages | | 11 | Go-to-Market | Channels, partnerships, CAC/LTV dynamics | | 12 | Team | Founders, advisors, key hires, domain credibility | | 13 | Financials | Projections, key assumptions, path to profitability | | 14 | The Ask | Funding amount, use of funds, milestone targets | | 15 | Appendix | Supporting data, references, backup slides |

The Global Context (slide 2) and Growth Flywheel (slide 9) are the two signature slides that distinguish a Studio deck from a generic pitch. They are non-negotiable for co-investor decks. Read references/slide-frameworks.md before generating these.

Audience Adaptation

• Co-investor / syndicate (default) — lead with market thesis, emphasize structural forces, highlight risk-adjusted returns, include DD-backed technical assessment if available
• Founder coaching — help the founder tell their story; adapt branding to the portfolio company; focus on what investors in their specific round will care about

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Step 4: Generate Slide Content

For each slide, consult references/slide-best-practices.md for research-backed guidance on what great looks like, what to avoid, and how investors evaluate that specific slide. Then produce:

• Headline — an insight, not a label. "A $47B market growing 23% annually" beats "Market Size"
• Body content — 3–5 bullets or a concise paragraph with evidence
• Visual direction — what chart, diagram, or layout would strengthen this slide
• Speaker notes — 2–3 sentences of talking points

Content Principles

• Every claim must be backed by data from the source materials or research
• Use specific numbers: "3,200 MAU" not "thousands of users"
• One key message per slide — if it has two, split it
• Write for the audience's priorities (co-investors care about returns and risk; founders care about traction and vision)

Industry-Specific Emphasis

Adapt language and metrics by sector:

| Sector | Key Metrics | |--------|------------| | SaaS | ARR, churn, NRR, CAC payback, LTV/CAC | | Biotech/Health | Regulatory pathway, clinical milestones, IP | | Marketplace | GMV, take rate, liquidity, network effects | | Hardware | BOM cost, manufacturing scale, distribution | | AI/ML | Model performance, data moats, compute costs | | Fintech | Regulatory compliance, transaction volume, trust |

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Step 5: Build the PPTX

Use the pptx skill's pptxgenjs approach (from-scratch creation). Before writing code:

1. Re-read /mnt/skills/public/pptx/pptxgenjs.md for the full API reference
2. Apply the branding from assets/utopia-branding.md (Studio default) or the portfolio company's brand if specified
3. Follow the pptx skill's design guidance — no boring slides, vary layouts, use visual elements on every slide

Branding Logic

• Studio deck for co-investors → Use Studio branding (Deep Navy, Steel Blue, Gold accent, Arial). Include "The Studio — Utopia Capital" footer and "Strictly Confidential" marking.
• Founder coaching deck → Ask the user for the company's brand colors, logo, and font preference. Fall back to a clean neutral palette if not provided.

Layout Variety

Do not repeat the same layout across slides. Rotate through:

• Title + large stat callouts
• Two-column (text left, visual right)
• Icon + text rows in grid
• Full-width visual with overlay text
• Comparison columns (before/after, us/them)
• Timeline or process flow
• The Global Context three-column layout
• The Flywheel circular/cyclical diagram

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Step 6: QA

Follow the pptx skill's QA process exactly:

1. Convert to images: python scripts/office/soffice.py --headless --convert-to pdf output.pptx then pdftoppm
2. Visually inspect every slide — check for overlaps, cut-off text, alignment issues, low contrast
3. Content check: python -m markitdown output.pptx — verify no missing content or placeholder text
4. Fix issues and re-verify

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Step 7: Score the Output & Review

After generating the deck, score it again using the same 15-dimension framework from references/scoring-rubric.md. Present a before/after comparison:

PITCH DECK QUALITY SCORECARD
                              Input    Output    Delta
 1. Narrative Clarity          X/10     X/10     +X
 2. Problem Definition         X/10     X/10     +X
 ...
TOTAL                         X/150    X/150    +X
GRADE                                  [A/B/C/D/F]

Then provide:

• Gap analysis — flag slides with weak evidence or [NEEDS INPUT] markers
• Narrative check — does the story flow from global context → problem → solution → proof → ask?
• Data verification — confirm statistics are sourced
• Dimension-specific recommendations — for any dimension still scoring 6 or below, explain what's missing, what to do, and how many points it could gain
• Top 3 priorities — the three most impactful improvements the user can make

Target a minimum grade of B (90+/150) before sharing a deck with co-investors. Anything below B needs another iteration.

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Handling Edge Cases

Sparse Source Material

• Build a skeleton deck with all slides
• Mark gaps with [NEEDS INPUT: specific question]
• Offer to research publicly available information
• Ask targeted questions: "What's your current MRR?" not "Tell me more about traction"

Multiple Sources / Contradictions

• Synthesize overlapping information
• Prioritize the most recent data when conflicts exist
• Flag contradictions for the user to resolve

Existing Deck Improvement

When the user uploads an existing pitch deck and asks to improve it:

• Extract all content first
• Identify structural gaps (missing Global Context? No flywheel?)
• Propose specific improvements before rebuilding
• Preserve any content the founder has clearly crafted carefully

DD Report Available

When a Technical DD report exists:

• Read references/dd-integration.md for extraction patterns
• Pull technology assessment findings into the Product and Solution slides
• Surface risk flags in speaker notes (not on-slide — these are for the presenter)
• Reference the DD report's evidence ratings where relevant