As technology advances, standing out will require the human touch, linguistic excellence and trust.
By now, it will be no surprise to anyone that artificial intelligence is developing and forcing the translation industry to undergo an unprecedented transformation. This situation might set off alarm bells for many people:
What is the future of translation?
To shed light on this issue, Okodia translations, a leading translation agency, had the honour of welcoming business professionals to its podcast Dándole a la Lengua. Un podcast (no solo) de traducción, to discuss current developments in translation and how the balance between automation and human quality will shape the future of the sector.
This is what the translation industry looks like now
The experts describe the current translation landscape using three basic adjectives: “challenging”, “balanced” and “uncertain”. Luis Rodriguez, CEO of the translation agency, points out that “new technologies, above all, present the challenges of understanding them, using them in everyday life, managing them and incorporating them…”
At the same time, we are at a critical moment where we must “take stock of the situation” and think about how to find a balance between “artificial intelligence and the world of translation,” argues Alessandra Pillieri, one of the commercial project managers. However, uncertainty is also a key feature of the industry, with freelance translators “having thrown in the towel, after seeing their workload drop significantly and the offers they receive being more for post-editing than human translation…”, says Scheherezade Surià, a translator of marketing and general texts at the translation company.
The challenges facing the future of translation
Without a doubt, the emergence of artificial intelligence has brought with it new challenges for professionals in the translation sector.
In the words of Luis Rodríguez, the main challenge in an environment where machine translation is becoming more prominent, lies in “offering the best service, the best quality, while making it clear that translation goes far beyond machine translation. That said, we must also adapt to the reality of the landscape we find ourselves in.” In the end, it’s a pressing need, as artificial intelligence “is setting the pace for other companies, which in turn are setting it for us and we in turn are setting it for the people working within the company“, he explains.
The good news is that everything eventually gets done. The experts highlight that they are managing to “work miracles” while dealing with the constant pressure of urgent requests and tight deadlines, because every project “is needed yesterday”, they joke. In addition, in cases like these, maintaining “smooth communication between client and translator” is an achievement in itself, notes Alessandra Pilieri.
How is the translation industry evolving?
As for the evolution of the industry, there are two main aspects. First, there are clients directly requesting revisions of AI translations. “A few years ago, they barely mentioned it to you, and now it is rare for a new client not to request this,” says Irene, sales executive. “Of course, the landscape has changed. It takes much longer than if it were from a human translation. And it’s not the same if you’re using your own translation engine, because if you’re already familiar with a tool, you know its shortcomings”, she points out.
Then there is the more optimistic side, those who try out AI and then come back looking for human quality after realising the limitations of machine translation. “It’s only when you try it for yourself that you come face to face with reality and realise that something is missing and that you could end up in a real mess“, emphasises Scheherezade Surià. Furthermore, in critical sectors such as medicine, clients still demand human translations and reviews due to the risks that potential errors could pose. “Clients have a solid understanding of the translation industry and appreciate its value”, says Sonia Herrero, a medical project manager.
Differentiation in the technological era
The key to standing out is, in the words of the specialists, to understand that “clients are not numbers, and neither are the translators”, and to transmit “confidence and transparency in the processes”. Another important factor is the pursuit of excellence. It is about “seeking very high quality translations, because low quality translations can be found everywhere, but high quality translations are more complicated”, says Luis Rodríguez.
And to achieve this, Sonia Herrero argues that “it is not just about trying to keep the client as happy as possible. Of course it is about the client, but it is also about the quality of the translation, the quality of the communication, the treatment of the translator as well (…). It is about looking for the best outcome for everybody involved in all parts of the process“.
Outlook and aspirations for the future of translation
Despite the impact of artificial intelligence, the experts are confident that the sector will find a balance. “I think everything will stabilise. When you think about it, machine translation has been around for many years. It is true that the engines are getting better all the time, but it has always been there and there has always been a need for human translations. A good example is the iPhone. When it was first released, it revolutionised the phone market, but now it has stabilised“, says Luis Rodriguez.
With this in mind, we encourage setting ambitious goals and continuing to strive for excellence: “If we settle for less, we will never even get that small amount, because we will think that since it is something we can easily achieve we can relax. But if we set a more ambitious, challenging, and distant goal, we will push ourselves much harder to achieve it”, concludes Luis Rodríguez.
