Whiteboard to Polls
Whiteboard to Polls is an AI tool designed to convert whiteboard diagrams into interactive online polls. This tool leverages artificial int...
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What is Whiteboard to Polls?
Make‑Real‑Polls (Whiteboard To Polls) is a web app that turns content drawn or written on a tldraw‑style whiteboard into live interactive polls with just a few clicks. It uses OpenAI’s GPT Vision to automatically read shapes, text, and annotations on the board, then generates a question and candidate answer options that can be launched as an instant poll during a live session. The tool is built on top of tldraw’s Make‑Real template and integrates 100ms for live audio‑video sessions, so participants can join via video and see poll results in real time without leaving the meeting flow.
Key features include one‑click poll creation from selected whiteboard content, AI‑generated poll questions and options, editable drafts before launching, and real‑time voting results displayed directly on the whiteboard or in the side panel. The interface is minimal and notebook‑like, focusing on drawing and annotating images or diagrams while letting the AI handle the tedious step of manually typing out poll questions and choices. This makes it particularly useful for quick checks, quizzes, votes, or decision‑making moments embedded inside an ongoing collaborative session.
The tool is primarily aimed at educators, trainers, workshop facilitators, and product or design teams who already use whiteboards in live sessions and want to inject instant interaction without context‑switching. It works well for classroom lectures, training modules, design reviews, or remote workshops where the host wants to gauge understanding, preference, or agreement on a concept that is already on the board. Because the poll is generated from the exact visual content attendees are looking at, it feels more natural and less disruptive than opening a separate polling tool or app.
Whiteboard to Polls pricing
Pricing model: Free
The site presents Make‑Real‑Polls as a demo app, not a commercially priced product with tiers. It is free to use in hosted form without account creation, but deploying or self‑hosting the project locally requires your own OpenAI API key and a 100ms account, both of which have their own usage‑based pricing. There is no separate paid plan or feature gate for the demo itself; any costs come from upstream services (OpenAI and 100ms) according to their respective billing models.
Whiteboard to Polls pros
- Turns whiteboard diagrams into live polls instantly
- One‑click poll creation from selected board elements
- Uses GPT Vision to read and interpret shapes and text
- Auto‑generates suitable poll questions from the board
- Auto‑generates multiple‑choice style answer options
- Allows manual editing of AI‑created questions and options
- Tight integration with tldraw’s Make‑Real whiteboard
- Runs inside a live audio‑video session powered by 100ms
- Shows real‑time voting results to participants
- Minimizes context‑switching during a live session
- No need to manually type full poll questions from scratch
- Helps maintain lecture or workshop flow without interruptions
- Embeds polls directly in the same canvas where content lives
- Demo‑ready UI that requires no deep setup
- Open‑source code available for self‑hosting and customization
Whiteboard to Polls cons
- Currently a demo rather than a full‑fledged product
- Requires an OpenAI API key with GPT‑4 Vision access
- Needs a 100ms account and template setup for self‑hosting
- Limited to the capabilities of GPT Vision on whiteboard content
- May misinterpret messy handwriting or complex diagrams
- No advanced poll logic such as branching or skip‑logic
- No built‑in persistence or long‑term analytics dashboard
- Minimal branding or customization options for the poll UI
Frequently asked questions about Whiteboard to Polls
What exactly does Whiteboard To Polls do?
Whiteboard To Polls takes content drawn, typed, or placed on a tldraw‑style whiteboard (like shapes, text, and diagrams) and converts it into a live, interactive poll. You select an area on the board, click Create Poll, and the app uses AI to generate a question and answer choices; you can then launch that poll to your audience in a live session and see votes in real time.
How is the poll question generated from the whiteboard?
The app uses OpenAI’s GPT Vision model to analyze the selected shapes and text on the whiteboard. Based on that visual context, it creates a natural‑language question and suggests multiple‑choice options that match what is on the board, which you can then review and edit before launching the poll.
Do participants need to install anything to vote?
Participants join the same live audio‑video session that hosts the whiteboard and poll, so they only need a browser and a link to the session. The poll interface appears in‑browser alongside the video feed and whiteboard, and they can vote without downloading extra apps.
Can I edit the AI‑generated question and options before launching?
Yes; after the AI generates a question and answer choices from the selected board content, you can manually edit the question text, add or remove options, or rephrase everything before starting the poll, so you retain full control over how the poll is framed.
Can I host this tool on my own servers or domain?
Yes; the project is open‑source and can be self‑hosted by forking the GitHub repository, installing dependencies, and providing your own OpenAI API key and a 100ms template configuration. Instructions in the repo outline how to set up environment variables and deploy the app locally or to a platform like Vercel.
Are there any limits on the number of polls I can create?
The hosted demo does not advertise a fixed limit on polls; instead, constraints come indirectly from the usage limits of your OpenAI and 100ms accounts. Self‑hosted deployments also depend on how you manage API budgets and rate limits on those services.
Does the tool preserve poll history or results after the session?
The site is described as a demo, and the documentation focuses on live interaction rather than long‑term storage. There is no built‑in analytics or export dashboard shown for saving or reviewing past poll results after the session ends, so persistence would need to be added in a custom deployment.
Is this tool suitable for large‑scale public elections or formal voting?
No; the tool is designed for lightweight, engagement‑oriented polls inside live sessions, not for legally binding or highly secure elections. It lacks advanced security and audit features, so it is best used for informal feedback, quizzes, preferences, and real‑time checks rather than formal voting.
Can participants see the poll results immediately?
Yes; once the poll is launched, participants can vote and see the results updating in real time, either embedded in the whiteboard session UI or in a nearby panel. The live results help facilitators adjust explanations or discussion on the fly based on the audience’s responses.
What kind of setup is needed to run the demo locally?
To run Make‑Real‑Polls locally, you need to clone the GitHub repository, install npm dependencies, obtain an OpenAI API key with GPT‑4 Vision access, and create a 100ms template from the provided config file. You then configure `.env.local` with that key, the template ID, and a 100ms management token before starting the dev server.