Problem

This error appears when trying to use BrightSlide on macOS with PowerPoint version 16.79

Cause

The issue is related to a bug in Microsoft 365 Office apps for macOS. It only occurs with version 16.79 and affects PowerPoint, Excel and Word.

Fix

You can either disable BrightSlide and wait for 16.79.1 (16.79.23111614) or higher, switch to the beta channel and update immediately, or revert to the previous version 16.78 via the Microsoft release history page.

How to disable BrightSlide

1. In the macOS menu for PowerPoint, click Tools / PowerPoint Add-ins…
2. Deselect BrightSlide and click OK
3. Do the opposite to re-enable BrightSlide when you have PowerPoint version 16.80 or above

How to switch to the beta channel

If you are an M365 subscriber, you can change the channel as follows:

1. In the macOS menu for PowerPoint, click Help / Check for Updates*
   
2. Click Advanced and Change the Update Channel to the Beta Channel
   

*Note that if you installed PowerPoint from the Apple App Store, you will not be able to change the channel. To check if you have the App Store version, run this command in the Teminal app:

mdls -name kMDItemAppStoreReceiptType /Applications/Microsoft\ PowerPoint.app

If it responds with “Production” you have the App Store version. If it responds with “(null)” you have the M365 version.