Using MCP to Generate Slides from Claude Desktop

#mcp #ai #claude #tutorial

SlideForge has a native MCP server that lets Claude Desktop generate consulting-quality PowerPoint files. Connect in 30 seconds with OAuth 2.1. Your agent gets 27 tools.

What is MCP?

MCP (Model Context Protocol) lets AI agents call external tools. Instead of Claude trying to generate a .pptx itself, it calls SlideForge â€” consulting-grade templates, AI creative generation, and visual QA.

Step 1: Connect (30 seconds)

Add this to your claude_desktop_config.json:

{
  "mcpServers": {
    "slideforge": {
      "url": "https://api.slideforge.dev/mcp/"
    }
  }
}

Restart Claude Desktop. OAuth handles authentication automatically.

Also works with: Cursor, Windsurf, Claude Code, and any MCP-compatible client.

Step 2: Generate a slide

Ask Claude: "Create a KPI dashboard: revenue $12.4M (+18% YoY), 847 new clients (+23%), NPS 71"

Claude calls suggest_template, finds a KPI template, calls render_slide, returns the .pptx with an inline preview. Under 2 seconds.

Step 3: Iterate

"Make the Revenue metric larger and add a green checkmark icon"

Claude calls iterate_slide with your feedback. $0.10 per iteration.

Step 4: Build a deck

"Create a 5-slide deck about our cloud migration strategy for the CTO"

Claude calls generate_deck â€” plans slides, matches templates, generates in parallel, compiles into one .pptx. ~30 seconds.

27 MCP Tools

Category	Tools
Slide Generation	render_slide, generate_slide, iterate_slide, render_spec, suggest_layout, render_preflight
Deck Workflows	generate_deck, consulting_deck, assemble_deck, fork_deck, translate_deck
Discovery	suggest_template, search_templates, list_templates, search_components, list_components
Jobs & Status	get_slide_status, list_jobs
Account	get_me, get_usage, get_capabilities, get_agent_onboarding, list_themes
Utilities	upload_file, submit_feedback