AI is a game changer for the translation and localization industry

Odds are you’ve heard the hype around the futuristic artificial intelligence-based tool currently taking the world by storm. But what is it and what can it really do for translators? The answers may surprise you.

What is ChatGPT?

ChatGPT is a large language model (LLM) designed and developed by OpenAI to generate human-like responses to prompts. LLMs are a type of artificial intelligence (AI) that have been trained on massive amounts of written text, including web pages, books, and articles, to predict the word or sequence of words most likely to follow a user-entered prompt. LLM-driven chatbots like ChatGPT are also trained on conversations from online forums and transcripts to engage in a back-and-forth dialogue with users and build on that conversation over time.

That Sounds Scary…

Will robots make language professionals obsolete? AI-induced anxiety abounds in our industry, like many others. But before you panic, remember that it’s still the early days. These systems are new to everyone—even AI developers don’t know everything they can do. And new use cases are being developed all the time, which is why the tools are being rolled out for the public to tinker with.

Also, LLMs like ChatGPT aren’t ideally suited to machine translation (MT). Can they translate to and from multiple languages? Yes. But ChatGPT’s output is painfully slow compared to the immediacy of MT-only tools like DeepL. ChatGPT’s appeal is in what it can do for translators beyond translation.

AI chatbots have been around for a while, but they're becoming increasingly sophisticated. These chatbots are designed to simulate human conversation and are becoming a popular tool for businesses looking to improve customer service and engagement.

In the future, we can expect AI chatbots to become even more advanced. They'll be able to understand natural language and accurately interpret the intent behind a user's message. This means they'll be able to provide more personalized responses and better anticipate a user's needs.

As AI technology continues to improve, chatbots will also be able to handle more complex tasks. They'll be able to recognize patterns and make decisions based on large amounts of data. This could lead to chatbots being used in areas such as healthcare, finance, and legal services.

One potential challenge with AI chatbots is the risk of them replacing human jobs. While chatbots can provide more efficient and cost-effective customer service, some jobs may become automated. However, it's important to note that chatbots can also create new opportunities for workers to focus on higher-level tasks.

Overall, the future for artificial intelligence and AI chatbots looks promising. As technology continues to improve, we can expect chatbots to become even more sophisticated and widespread.