Slator - Language Industry News

In an December 29, 2024 paper by Sony Research India researchers Pratik Rakesh Singh, Mohammadi Zaki, and Pankaj Wasnik comes a framework specifically designed to "improve entertainment content translations" in Indian languages. They "believe it is the first of its kind," using an amalgamation of context awareness along with style adaptation to produce not only accurate translations but also entertaining for the targeted audience. The researchers explained that traditional machine translation MT systems usually struggle to handle entertainment content because they mostly translate sentences in isolation. It leads to "disconnected" translations that can't really capture the emotional depth or cultural references behind the original dialogue. This has a particular pronounced effect in entertainment, where all these interconnected conversations and subtle cues in the narrative are so vital. The challenge, in entertainment translation, lies in preserving ...

Google Says There’s a Better Way to Create High-Quality Training Data for AI Translation In an October 14, 2024  paper , Google researchers highlighted the potential of AI translations refined by humans or human translations refined by  large language models  (LLMs) as alternatives to traditional human-only references. Talking to Slator, Zhongtao Liu, a Software Engineer at Google, explained that their study addresses a growing challenge in the translation industry: scaling the collection of high-quality data needed for fine-tuning and testing  machine translation  (MT) systems.  With translation demand expanding across multiple languages, domains, and use cases, traditional methods that rely solely on human translators have become increasingly expensive, time-consuming, and hard to scale. To address this challenge, the researchers explored more efficient approaches to collect high-quality translation data. They compared 11 different approaches — including ...

Here’s a New Dataset for Emotion-Aware Speech Translation Imagine a world where translations don't just convert words but also capture the emotions behind them. This is the promise of MELD-ST, a new dataset introduced in May 2024 by researchers from the Technical University of Munich, Kyoto University, SenseTime, and Japan's National Institute of Informatics. This dataset is designed to revolutionize speech translation by ensuring that emotional context is preserved, enhancing both speech-to-text (S2TT) and speech-to-speech translation (S2ST) systems. Background Emotion plays a critical role in human conversation, yet most translation systems struggle to accurately convey the emotional tone of the original speech. While text-to-text translation (T2TT) has seen some progress in emotion-aware translation, speech translation remains a largely uncharted territory. The introduction of MELD-ST aims to fill this gap. The Creation of MELD-ST MELD-ST builds upon the existing Multimod...

Language AI Briefing May 2024 Language AI , or Artificial Intelligence designed to comprehend, generate, and interact in human languages, continues to evolve at a rapid pace. The May 2024 briefing highlights significant advancements in this field, ushering in a new era of communication and innovation. Advancements in Language AI In recent years, Language AI has witnessed remarkable progress, driven by breakthroughs in deep learning algorithms and access to vast amounts of linguistic data. These advancements have propelled the development of AI models capable of understanding, generating, and translating human languages with unprecedented accuracy and fluency. One of the most notable advancements is the refinement of Natural Language Understanding (NLU) models, enabling machines to comprehend human language in context, grasp nuances, and respond appropriately. This development has profound implications for various applications, including virtual assistants, customer service automatio...

IQVIA Rebrands Internal Language Division as Linguamatics In a strategic move to streamline its operations and strengthen its brand identity, IQVIA, a leading global provider of advanced analytics, technology solutions, and clinical research services to the healthcare industry, has recently announced the rebranding of its internal language division as Linguamatics. Background of IQVIA and Linguamatics IQVIA , formerly known as Quintiles and IMS Health, has a rich history dating back several decades. The company has played a pivotal role in revolutionizing the healthcare industry through its innovative solutions and services. With a focus on harnessing data and analytics to drive better healthcare outcomes, IQVIA has established itself as a trusted partner for organizations across the globe. Linguamatics , a subsidiary of IQVIA, specializes in natural language processing (NLP) technology, offering advanced solutions for extracting valuable insights from unstructured text data. Since i...

LanguageWire has acquired WhP, a DITA localization specialist based in France. Denmark-headquartered language service provider (LSP)  LanguageWire  is back on the M&A trail with its acquisition of  WhP International . The terms of the transaction, which was completed on April 5, 2024, were not disclosed. WhP was founded 30 years ago and has offices in Quebec and London in addition to its France headquarters. The company specializes in providing translation services for software, e-learning, and technical documentation and has a strong focus on XML and DITA. LanguageWire’s CEO,  Søren Bech Justesen , told Slator the WhP acquisition is aligned with the company’s growth and M&A strategy and will “enhance LanguageWire’s scale and competitive position in the LSP market.”  WhP is LanguageWire’s third France-based acquisition in two years; the company bought  Agency Walker Services  (AWS) in 2022 and  A.D.T. International  in 2023, expandin...

Translation Technology: Revolutionizing Global Communication In today's interconnected world, the demand for efficient and accurate translation technology has never been higher. From breaking down language barriers to facilitating international business transactions, translation technology plays a crucial role in bridging the gap between different cultures and languages. Introduction to Translation Technology Translation technology encompasses a wide range of tools and systems designed to facilitate the translation of text from one language to another. It has evolved significantly over the years, moving from basic machine translation to sophisticated natural language processing (NLP) algorithms and Translation Management Systems (TMS). Types of Translation Technology Machine Translation Machine translation utilizes algorithms to automatically translate text from one language to another. While early versions of machine translation were often criticized for their inaccuracies, rece...