Presenting at keynote conferences, board meetings, or investor pitches requires more than visually compelling slides—it demands confident verbal delivery, balanced pacing, clear vocal variety, and engaging body language. In the past, refining speech cadence required rehearsing in front of colleagues or hiring professional presentation coaches. Microsoft integrates AI-powered public speaking evaluation into PowerPoint via Speaker Coach (formerly Rehearse with Coach). Speaker Coach uses speech recognition models to deliver real-time feedback on your pacing, filler words, pitch monotony, and slide reading habits.
Hardware and Platform Availability
Speaker Coach is built into PowerPoint across multiple platforms:
- Supported Versions: PowerPoint on the web (free for all Microsoft account holders), PowerPoint for Windows, PowerPoint for Mac, and PowerPoint on iOS/Android.
- Hardware: Any functioning built-in or external USB microphone. A stable internet connection is required for cloud neural speech analysis.
- Language Support: Optimized for presentations delivered in English, with ongoing expansion across additional languages.
Starting a Rehearsal Session with Speaker Coach
To initiate an AI-assisted practice session:
- Open your presentation deck in Microsoft PowerPoint.
- Navigate to the Slide Show tab on the top ribbon.
- Click the Rehearse with Coach button.
- PowerPoint enters a specialized full-screen presentation mode. In the lower-right corner, a welcome dialog appears displaying a microphone icon.
- Check the box labeled Show real-time feedback if you want instant on-screen alerts during your talk.
- Click Start rehearsing and begin speaking through your slides as if addressing a live audience.
Interpreting Real-Time On-Screen Guidance
As you speak, Speaker Coach monitors your vocal cadence and delivers gentle prompt pills:
- Pacing Alerts: Notifies you if your talking speed accelerates beyond 160 words per minute (“Slow down slightly”) or falls below 100 words per minute.
- Filler Word Detection: Flags verbal crutches like “um”, “ah”, “you know”, and “basically” to help you become conscious of speech habits.
- Slide Reading Warnings: If you read verbatim text directly from bullet points without adding conversational context, Speaker Coach alerts: “Try not to read the slide text verbatim”.
- Pitch Variety: Identifies monotonous vocal patterns and suggests adding inflection to emphasize key points.
Analyzing the Post-Rehearsal Summary Report
When you conclude your presentation, press Esc to view the detailed Rehearsal Report:
- The report dashboard outlines:
- Pacing Graph: Displays words per minute charted across the duration of your talk with a designated optimal comfort zone.
- Filler Words Summary: Shows total counts and specific slides where repetitive crutch words occurred.
- Repetitive Language & Inclusive Language: Highlights culturally insensitive or obsolete phrasing and suggests modern professional alternatives.
- Click Rehearse again to run another iteration and compare improvements over multiple practice sessions.