Remove an object from a photo inside PowerPoint

What PowerPoint can do on its own

PowerPoint's Picture Format > Remove Background removes a plain background around a subject. It cannot erase an object in the middle of a photo and fill the gap. Cropping works only when the object sits at the edge.

The usual way: edit outside and come back

1. Save the picture out of PowerPoint (right-click > Save as Picture).
2. Remove the object in a photo editor. Photoshop's Remove tool and Content-Aware Fill do it well; newer versions of Windows Photos and Apple Photos have an erase or clean-up tool too.
3. Bring the picture back with Change Picture, then fix the crop and position again, because the replaced picture often loses them.

It works, but each round trip takes minutes, and the photo may go to an online service.

Remove it without leaving PowerPoint, with KPT Retouch Basic (free)

KPT Retouch is a free add-in for PowerPoint for Mac and PowerPoint for Windows (beta) that opens a Photoshop-style editor for the selected picture.

1. Select the picture on the slide and press Retouch on the ribbon.
2. Choose Remove, then brush over the object.
3. The AI fills the gap with what should be behind it. Refine with the healing brush or clone stamp if you like.
4. Press Apply to Slide. The picture goes back into the same frame, with its crop, rotation and flips kept.

The AI runs on your computer, so the photo is never uploaded. The editor also has layers, masks, Levels, Curves, selections and text, Arabic included.