Use the AI Chart Assistant (Beta)

Available from Version: 10.0

Operating System: Windows

empower® Add-in: Chart Creation

The empower® AI Chart Assistant is currently in a beta phase.

It can be used to create and modify data and Gantt charts based on data the AI has been trained with, data from accessible URLs provided in the chat or custom data provided by yourself in the chat.

The respective data is then transformed and entered into the mini Excel for the respective chart.

Alternatively, you can provide the empower® AI Chart Assistant with an existing Excel file. It then understands the file's structure and where it is stored and can create an Excel link to this file.

In addition, you can use it to insert CAGR and growth arrows or delta and value lines into data charts. For Gantt charts, you can insert task bars and milestones as well as highlights and date lines.

Important

As the empower® AI Chart Assistant is currently in a beta phase, it is disabled by default. Therefore, it may not be available depending on the setup of your empower® Environment.

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For the empower® AI Chart Assistant to be available, an LLM API key for your organization is required.

For further information regarding this technical setup and requirements to make the empower® AI Chart Assistant available, see Technical Setup for the empower® AI Chart Assistant.

Note

The empower® AI Chart Assistant can transform data from different sources to write it into the mini Excel of a chart.

However, it never changes the content of existing Excel files that you provide.

To open the empower® AI Chart Assistant, click on the button More (Figure 1, “Button More”).

A drop-down menu opens.

Figure 1. Button More

Button More

In this drop-down menu, choose the option AI Chart Assistant (Figure 2, “Option AI Chart Assistant”).

The empower® AI Chart Assistant opens in the side pane on the right-hand side of your PowerPoint window.

Figure 2. Option AI Chart Assistant

Option AI Chart Assistant

Alternatively, you can open the empower® AI Chart Assistant via the action bar of an existing chart.

To do so, select the chart and click on the button AI Chart Assistant in the chart's action bar (Figure 3, “Button AI Chart Assistant for Data Chart”).

Figure 3. Button AI Chart Assistant for Data Chart

Button AI Chart Assistant for Data Chart

Note

In your User Settings, you can specify custom and company-specific requirements for the empower® AI Chart Assistant.

For example, you can specify coloring preferences or communication preferences.

For further information, see User Settings.

Insert and Create New Charts

If you want to insert a new chart into your presentation using the empower® AI Chart Assistant, select the slide into which you want to insert the chart and then enter your prompt into the input field (Figure 4, “Enter Prompt in Input Field”).

To send your prompt, either press Enter or click on the button Send Prompt in the input field.

Figure 4. Enter Prompt in Input Field

Enter Prompt in Input Field

Make sure to be as precise as possible when writing your prompt.

If possible, provide the following information:

  • Which chart type do you want to insert?

    If possible, name the exact chart type.

    You can also ask the AI to choose the most suitable chart type for your data.

  • Where do you want to place the chart on your slide?

    If there are placeholders on the slide which you want to use, describe which placeholder the chart should be placed in.

    If there are no placeholders or if you do not want to use a placeholder, specify the exact position.

    You can also tell the AI to align the new chart with an existing chart, shape or placeholder.

  • Specify the data as clearly as possible.

    If you have an Excel file containing the data, you can also create an Excel link from this file to use the contained data. For further information, see Create Excel Links.

  • Optionally, specify which additional objects you want to add to your chart.

    If you want to add lines or arrows in data charts or tasks or milestones in Gantt charts, make sure to specify where in the chart the object should be positioned (e.g. growth arrow from lowest to highest column total, task bar from one date to another).

Important

As the empower® AI Chart Assistant is currently in a beta phase, it is not yet optimized to work with large Excel files.

It is therefore recommended to use smaller Excel files that do not contain big amounts of data.

Note

If not specified otherwise, the empower® AI Chart Assistant will create an Excel link if you add data in form of an Excel file.

If you only want to use the data but do not want to create an Excel link, specify this information in your prompt.

You can also ask the AI to create a chart without providing data.

The empower® AI Chart Assistant will then insert a chart with default values and you can add your own data either manually or by entering a subsequent prompt.

The following use case provides an example prompt and result:

Example

The following prompt could be used to insert a stacked column chart into a slide with a title placeholder and two general placeholders:

Create a stacked column chart and insert it into the placeholder on the right-hand side of the slide. The chart should contain the following data:

  • 2 Series (Stack 1 and Stack 2), 5 Categories (Years 2022 to 2026)

  • Stack 1 has the following values: 100, 200, 150, 200, 220

  • Stack 2 has the following values: 100, 200, 150, 200, 220

Add a growth arrow from the lowest column total to the highest column total.

After the empower® AI Chart Assistant has processed the prompt and inserted the chart into the placeholder, the slide would look as follows:

CC_AI_Example_Result.png

Use Pictures to Create Charts

If you have a picture of a chart, e.g. a screenshot of a chart that has not yet been created with empower®, you can use this picture to ask the empower® AI Chart Assistant to create the chart in PowerPoint.

To do so, click on the button Add File and select a file from your device (Figure 5, “Add Picture File”).

Alternatively, copy the file and paste it into the input field or drag and drop the file into the input field.

The picture is added as context to your prompt.

Then, prompt the empower® AI Chart Assistant to create a chart based on the picture.

Figure 5. Add Picture File

Add Picture File

The empower® AI Chart Assistant will then create a chart based on the picture, choosing the most similar colors and reflecting the displayed values and/or proportion between the series.

Use URLs to Create Charts

If you want to use data from a website to create a chart with empower®, include the URL to this website in your prompt (Figure 6, “Included URL in Prompt”).

In your prompt, specify which data you want to use for your chart and, if possible, specify which chart type you want to create.

Figure 6. Included URL in Prompt

Included URL in Prompt

The empower® AI Chart Assistant will then create a chart based on the data on the website you specified.

Create Excel Links

If you have a local Excel file that contains your data in a suitable data structure, you can use this file to create your chart and directly link that chart to the Excel file.

To do so, click on the button Add File and select a file from your device (Figure 7, “Add Excel File”).

Alternatively, copy the file and paste it into the input field or drag and drop the file into the input field.

The file is added to the context of your prompt.

Then, you can prompt the empower® AI Chart Assistant to create a chart based on the data in that Excel file by creating an Excel link.

If you do not want to create an Excel link but rather copy the data from the Excel file to the mini Excel of the new chart, prompt the empower® AI Chart Assistant accordingly.

Figure 7. Add Excel File

Add Excel File

The empower® AI Chart Assistant will then create a chart based on the data in the provided Excel file.

Depending on the specifications in your prompt, it will either create an Excel link to the file or copy the data from the file to the mini Excel of the chart without creating an Excel link.

Note

If you click on the file name in the chat window, the Excel file opens from your device.

If you have an online Excel file that contains your data in a suitable data structure, you can use this file to create your chart and directly link that chart to the Excel file.

To do so, enter your prompt and specify the URL to the online Excel file in your prompt.

If the online Excel file can be opened, the empower® AI Chart Assistant can create a chart based on the data in the Excel file.

In addition, an Excel link to the referenced Excel file can be created in most cases.

Important

As the empower® AI Chart Assistant is currently in a beta phase, it is not yet optimized to work with large Excel files.

It is therefore recommended to use smaller Excel files that do not contain big amounts of data.

Note

For further information regarding Excel links, see Use Excel Links.

Edit Existing Data Charts

The empower® AI Chart Assistant is aware of the current slide content and your current selection.

Using the empower® AI Chart Assistant, you can make the following changes to your data charts:

  • Replace the current chart data in the mini Excel.

  • Insert a CAGR arrow between one specified data point and another.

  • Insert a growth arrow between one specified data point and another.

  • Insert a delta line between one specified data point and another.

  • Insert a value line for the average value or a specified value.

  • Change point and series colors.

    You can change fill colors, line colors, marker colors and border colors for all data points.

Edit Existing Gantt Charts

The empower® AI Chart Assistant is aware of the current slide content and your current selection.

Using the empower® AI Chart Assistant, you can make the following changes to your Gantt charts:

  • Replace the current chart data in the mini Excel.

  • Set the Gantt period to adjust automatically or to display a specified date range.

  • Add or delete rows and phases.

  • Add or delete task bars, milestones, date lines and markers.

  • Change the color for task bars, milestones, date lines and markers.

  • Add, change and delete status elements in the notes areas.

  • Change and delete labels for Gantt objects.

Start a New Chat

If you have finished your current task or if you want to start a fresh session, you can start a new chat.

For example, this can be useful if you have finished working with a large Excel file.

To do so, click on the button New Chat in the upper left corner of the side pane (Figure 8, “Button New Chat”).

The chat window is cleared.

You can now start a new chat session.

Figure 8. Button New Chat

Button New Chat

Important

If you start a new chat, your chat messages will be lost. All progress in PowerPoint will be maintained.

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