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Prezi

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Not to be confused with Preci or Précis (disambiguation).
Prezi
Type of site
Presentation Collaboration
Available inEnglish, Portuguese, Spanish, Korean, Japanese, German, Italian, French, Hungarian
HeadquartersSan Francisco, United States Budapest, Hungary
OwnerPrezi Inc
Founder(s)Adam Somlai-Fischer
Peter Halacsy
Peter Arvai
Employees300 (2022)
URLwww.prezi.com
LaunchedApril 5, 2009; 16 years ago (2009-04-05)
Current statusActive

Prezi is a presentation software company founded in 2009 in Budapest[1] Prezi provides AI-powered tools that enable users to create engaging, non-linear presentations. As of 2025, they have more then 160 million users worldwide[2] who have created approximately 400 million presentations.[3][1][4] In 2019, they launched Prezi Video, a tool that allows for virtual presentations within the video screen of a live or recorded video.[5] In 2024, Prezi introduced "Prezi AI", an AI-powered presentation tool.[6][7]

History

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The building housing the Prezi offices in Budapest (2016)
Prezi offices in San Francisco (2020)

Prezi was founded in 2009 in Budapest, Hungary, by Adam Somlai-Fischer, Peter Halacsy, and Peter Arvai.[8] The company incorporated on May 20, 2009, and received its first major investment from TED two months later.[9] In November 2009, a San Francisco office was opened.[10]

In early 2011, Prezi launched its first iPad application. That same year, it received $14M in Series B venture capital funding led by Accel Partners.[11] A Prezi iPhone app was launched in late 2012.[12]

In March 2014, Prezi pledged $100 million in free licenses to Title 1 schools as part of the Obama administration's ConnectED program.[13] November of that year saw the announcement of $57 million in new funding from Spectrum Equity and Accel Partners.[14]

In February 2015, Prezi launched Nutshell, an app for creating 'mini-movies' from photos.[15] Prezi for Android was launched in 2015, and in June 2016, the company launched Prezi Business[16] which combines the core features of Prezi Present with business-focused productivity tools, including real-time data analytics, integration with the business collaboration platform Slack, commenting and co-editing features, and the Live Prezi feature, with virtual meeting rooms for hosting remote Prezi presentations.[17]

In April 2017, Prezi Next—a new HTML5-based product—was released.[18] In May 2017, Prezi acquired Infogram, a data visualization company based in Latvia.[19]

In 2017, Prezi started to observe a shift from presentations being primarily onstage and in-person, to increased virtual presenting, and the company began a broader effort to refocus around improving virtual meetings and integrating into virtual communications tools.[4][20]

In 2019, Prezi renamed the flagship platform, Prezi Next, to Prezi Present to better position themselves as the best visual storytelling software alternative to traditional slide-based presentation formats. Prezi presentations offer an open canvas format that allows presenters to emphasize key ideas through their zooming feature. An update to the original Prezi presentation software features a redesigned editor, designer templates, and Prezi Viewer for Android and iOS devices. Additionally, Prezi Present makes it possible to use augmented reality in presentations.[21]

In November 2019, Prezi launched Prezi Video, a video tool that lets users give virtual presentations in the screen of a live or recorded video, enabling video presenters to interact with their visual content like a newscaster or weather-person.[5][22] Users can leverage Prezi Video in a live meeting or create recorded videos, allowing the presenter to maintain a face-to-face connection with their audience. [23] Prezi Video is integrated with popular video chat platforms and communication tools; it can be used in Zoom, Microsoft Teams, Google Hangouts, Slack, Facebook, GoToWebinar and Webex.[20][24][25][26]

Teachers were the quickest audience to adopt Prezi Video, and by April 2020 Prezi had teachers in 175 countries using Prezi Video in their virtual classrooms.[27][28] Prezi Video received a 2020 Award of Excellence from Tech & Learning Magazine.[29] Steven M. Baule and Julie E. Lewis state that "making a Prezi video is fairly simple", and that the "presentation engine is robust and allows for embedded video from YouTube or other sources".[30]

That same year, they launched Prezi Design, a cloud-based graphic design tool that can be used to make professional-looking charts, reports, maps, infographics, and more. It has since had a name change to Infographics.[25][31]

In July 2020, Prezi named President Jim Szafranski as the new CEO, and announced that Co-Founder and CEO Peter Arvai would become Executive Chairman. Szafranski joined Prezi as Chief Operating Officer in 2015 and was named to the Board of Directors in 2018, before being elevated to President in 2019.[32][33]

In 2024, Prezi launched Prezi AI, marking a major shift in AI-driven presentation creation. Prezi AI is an AI-powered tool that designs presentations based on user content, while maintaining its trademark of non-linear storytelling. Prezi AI differentiates itself from traditional slide-based tools by providing cinematic, dynamic presentations that adapt to content rather than relying on static templates. Prezi AI positions the company as a leader in AI-powered storytelling, helping users—from educators to business professionals—create presentations that are visually engaging, personalized, and effective.

Uses

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The platform has been used in the conference setting by the Clinton Foundation, Lufthansa, IBM, and The Independent, and is a staple at both SXSW and TED.[9] Prezi Business is designed specifically for sales and marketing professionals. The platform combines conversational presenting capabilities with business-focused features such as collaboration, Slack integration, and analytics.[17] Prezi worked closely with the ConnectED initiative since its inauguration by President Barack Obama in 2013, providing free Prezi licenses to hundreds of thousands of Title I high school teachers across the USA.[13] It has also been used for creative purposes, such as Alexandra Saemmer's digital poem Böhmische Dörfer.

In 2022, Prezi was recognized as a recipient of the 2022 Zoom Partner Awards from Zoom Video Communications, Inc., commending the company's impactful achievements in enabling 'on-screen' content for more engaging video meetings. The award was presented to Prezi for the Integrated Software Vendor (ISV) Integration Partner of the Year at Zoomtopia Partner Connect.

Prezi is widely used by businesses, educators, and professionals across various industries. The company has been recognized for its innovative approach to visual storytelling, with adoption by organizations such as 80% of Fortune 500 companies and all eight Ivy League universities. Additionally, Prezi has been instrumental in its growing presence in educational institutions, being actively used in over half of U.S. school districts.

References

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  1. ^ a b Sebag-Montefiore, Clarissa (3 July 2020). "Great Escapes: Prezi Founder Peter Arvai on How to Make Your Home a Refuge". Barron's Penta. Retrieved 7 April 2021.
  2. ^ "Prezi announces Google Slides integration". TechRepublic. 29 July 2021.
  3. ^ "Prezi introduces dynamic video teaching tools as education moves online". VentureBeat. 16 October 2020. Retrieved 7 April 2021.
  4. ^ a b What, Now (1 October 2020). "Are you still doing ordinary screen-share?". CNET. Retrieved 7 April 2021.
  5. ^ a b MacLellan, Lila (24 January 2020). "Prezi wants to make you the Rachel Maddow of your office". Quartz. Retrieved 7 April 2021.
  6. ^ Arvai, Peter; Halacsy, Peter; Somlai-Fischer, Adam. "Prezi Founders" (Interview). Interviewed by Gary Goldman. Daily Brink. Archived from the original on 2012-11-13. Retrieved 2023-01-29.
  7. ^ Handley, Lucy (2022-01-25). "The rise of the 15-minute meeting — and how to run one". CNBC. Retrieved 2022-02-21.
  8. ^ Coleman, Alison (7 November 2014). "How Prezi Helped Turn Budapest Into Europe's Newest Startup Hub". Forbes.com. Retrieved 7 April 2021.
  9. ^ a b Schwartz, Ariel (31 July 2013). "The First Company that TED Ever Invested in is Changing the Way We Make Presentations". Fast Company. Retrieved 7 April 2021.
  10. ^ "Prezi Co-founder Retires After 12 Years". Hungary Today. 29 July 2020. Retrieved 7 April 2021.
  11. ^ "Company Announcements". Prezi (Press release). 15 December 2011. Retrieved 7 April 2021.
  12. ^ "View Presentations On The iPhone And Edit On The iPad With New Prezi Apps". Tech Crunch. 28 November 2012. Retrieved 7 April 2021.
  13. ^ a b Farr, Christina (28 February 2014). "Adobe & Prezi commit $400M to President Obama's digital literacy program". VentureBeat. Retrieved 7 April 2021.
  14. ^ Butcher, Mike (19 November 2014). "Prezi Secures $57M Growth Round From Spectrum And Accel, Passes 50M Users". TechCrunch. Retrieved 7 April 2021.
  15. ^ O'Hear, Steve (10 February 2015). "Prezi Launches Nutshell, An App To Turn Photos Into 'Mini-Movies'". TechCrunch. Retrieved 7 April 2021.
  16. ^ Sawers, Paul (7 June 2016). "With 75M users, Prezi targets businesses with new collaboration and analytics tools for presentations". VentureBeat. Retrieved 7 April 2021.
  17. ^ a b Boyd, Stowe (7 June 2016). "Prezi Business: Moving out of the Auditorium to the Meeting". Gigaom. Archived from the original on June 8, 2016. Retrieved 7 April 2021.
  18. ^ Maina, Antony (2 May 2017). "New Prezi Next Offers Audience Feedback in Real Time on Your Next Presentation". Small Business Trends. Retrieved 7 April 2021.
  19. ^ Sawers, Paul (16 May 2017). "Prezi makes its first acquisition, snaps up Latvian data visualization startup Infogram". VentureBeat. Retrieved 7 April 2021.
  20. ^ a b Chin, Monica (21 September 2020). "Prezi is releasing new video features to make virtual teaching more exciting". The Verge. Retrieved 7 April 2021.
  21. ^ Cruz, Claudia (25 April 2017). "Prezi Next permitirá usar la realidad aumentada en presentaciones" [Prezi Next brings augmented reality to presentations]. CNET (in Spanish). Retrieved 7 April 2021.
  22. ^ Technology, Bloomberg (26 November 2019). "Prezi's Video Tool Improves Live Presentations, CEO Says". Bloomberg. Retrieved 7 April 2021.
  23. ^ Donnellan, Laurel (20 November 2020). "Jim Szafranski Leads Prezi (And All Of Us) Into The Future Of Interactive Content". Forbes. Retrieved 7 April 2021.
  24. ^ Graham, Jefferson (20 August 2020). "10 cool Zoom app plug-ins to enhance your video meeting experience". USA Today. Retrieved 7 April 2021.
  25. ^ a b Kaplan, Juliana (1 October 2020). "How the CEO of a startup challenging the dominance of Microsoft Powerpoint conquered his quarantine mornings". Business Insider. Retrieved 7 April 2021.
  26. ^ Sawers, Paul (16 October 2020). "Prezi introduces dynamic video teaching tools as education moves online". VentureBeat. Retrieved 7 April 2021.
  27. ^ Finance, Yahoo! (8 September 2020). "There will be a 'massive shift' in how teaching in the workplace is executed: Prezi CEO". Yahoo! Finance. Retrieved 7 April 2021.
  28. ^ Markets, Bloomberg (14 September 2020). "Prezi CEO Talks Mainstream Tech in Education". Bloomberg. Retrieved 7 April 2021.
  29. ^ Editors, TL (24 July 2020). "Tech & Learning Names the Winners of the Awards of Excellence Contest". Tech & Learning. Retrieved 7 April 2021. {{cite web}}: |last= has generic name (help)
  30. ^ Baule, Steven M.; Lewis, Julie E. (2012). Social Networking for Schools. Linworth. p. 81. ISBN 9781586835378.
  31. ^ Green, Alisha (7 February 2020). "Next slide, please: Prezi CEO adds more presentation products to the lineup". BizJournals. Retrieved 7 April 2021.
  32. ^ "Jim Szafranski Leads Prezi (And All Of Us) Into The Future Of Interactive Content". Forbes. Retrieved 7 April 2021.
  33. ^ Schőnviszky, Csenge (29 July 2020). "Prezi Co-founder Retires After 12 Years". Hungary Today. Retrieved 7 April 2021.
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