Read pitch decks closely and see which slide each answer comes from
A pitch deck packs a company's whole case into a dozen or so slides of short phrases, charts and big numbers, and the definitions behind those numbers are often missing or tucked into an appendix. Add the deck, usually sent as a PDF, to a Search+ workspace, ask what a claim means or where it is stated, and open the cited slide text before you take the figure any further.
Creating an account needs no payment.
Last updated October 2026
How to review a pitch deck with Search+
- Upload the deck and anything sent with it
Add the deck PDF together with the appendix, a one-page summary, financial statements, and the data pack or financial model, which founders often send as Excel. A deck often states a figure that only the supporting material defines.
- Write your screening criteria in Workspace Context
Record what you look for once, such as "I invest at seed in business software; note how each traction figure is defined and flag claims with no stated source". Every question in the workspace then uses those criteria.
- Ask slide by slide, then open the citation
Ask about one topic at a time: the problem, the market size, traction, the team, the raise. Each answer cites the slide text it drew on, so you can see whether the deck actually says what the answer reports.
Questions investors ask of a pitch deck
What total market size does the deck claim, how is it broken down, and does it name a source or method for the figure?
What traction metrics does the deck give, such as revenue, customers or active users, and how is each one defined?
How much is the company raising, and how does the deck say the money will be used?
Which competitors does the deck name, and what does it claim sets the company apart from each?
Who are the founders, and what relevant experience does the deck describe for each of them?
Across the decks in this workspace, which companies report recurring revenue rather than pilots or letters of intent?
What reading a pitch deck well takes
Most decks move through the problem, the solution and product, the market, the business model, traction, go-to-market, competition, the team, financials or projections, and the ask with its use of funds. Knowing the order helps you notice which slide is missing.
Terms like annual recurring revenue, users or pipeline can mean different things in different decks. Ask how each metric is defined and over what period, and treat any figure without a definition as unverified.
Total, serviceable and obtainable market figures are often built from third-party reports and assumptions. Ask where each figure comes from, and whether the deck shows a bottom-up calculation.
Answers draw on the words a deck contains. A number that appears only as a bar in a chart or inside a pasted screenshot may come through incompletely or not at all, so check those slides by eye and ask the founders for the underlying figures.
Keep a set of decks in one workspace and ask Search+ to compare them or find themes across them, or narrow a question to a single deck. Answers cite the deck each point comes from.
The slides of a pitch deck and a question for each
| Slide | What it usually claims | A question to ask Search+ |
|---|---|---|
| Problem | A pain point and who has it | Who does the deck say has this problem, and what evidence does it give? |
| Solution and product | What the company built and how it works | What does the product do today, as opposed to what is planned? |
| Market | The size of the opportunity | What source or method does the deck give for its market size? |
| Business model | How the company makes money | What does the deck say about pricing and who pays? |
| Traction | Revenue, customers, growth or pilots | Which traction figures are revenue and which are pilots or commitments? |
| Competition | Alternatives and the company's edge | Which competitors are named, and what advantage is claimed over each? |
| Team | Founders, key hires and advisers | What experience does each founder bring to this market? |
| The ask | Amount, instrument and use of funds | How much is being raised and what milestones will it fund? |
What is a pitch deck?
A pitch deck is a short slide presentation that founders use to explain their company to prospective investors, covering the problem, product, market, traction, team and the amount they want to raise. It is meant to win a meeting or a follow-up conversation, not to stand as a complete record.
Questions about reviewing pitch decks with AI
Can Search+ tell me what a deck claims about traction?
What happens with charts and screenshots on the slides?
Can I screen many decks at once?
Does it check the market size against outside data?
Will Search+ tell me whether to invest in the startup?
My deck lives in a presentation app. What should I upload?
Read past the headline numbers
Start a workspace, upload the decks you are screening, and ask how each claim is defined and supported.
Start a workspace