Your voice in the world’s languages.. How has artificial intelligence changed the future of translation? | Miscellaneous

Artificial intelligence has launched a new era in the world of translation, with technologies capable of transmitting voice and tone into dozens of languages ​​instantly, bringing the distance between humans closer, but at the same time raising concerns about the misuse of voices and digital forgery.

Translation is no longer just words transmitted from one language to another, but rather it is approaching a real human conversation, after artificial intelligence technologies revealed a new stage that may change the form of communication between humans around the world.

Google has launched its new audio model for simultaneous translation, which is capable of transforming the speaker’s voice, tone, and speech rhythm within seconds into dozens of languages, in a move that the company says aims to make dialogue between people of different languages ​​more natural and smooth.

The new model, as the report prepared by Omar Fayyad for Al Jazeera indicates, relies on advanced technologies that allow translation while speaking directly, while preserving the features of the speaker’s original voice even after converting the speech to another language. It can also automatically recognize the language used without the need to adjust the settings in advance.

Misuse

These capabilities open the door to a major transformation in the fields of travel, education, business, and international communication, as two people who speak two different languages ​​may become able to conduct a direct dialogue as if the language barrier no longer exists.

But the new development did not come without concerns, as researchers warn of the possibility of misusing voice imitation techniques to impersonate personalities or produce fake content that could contribute to spreading misleading information.

To address these concerns, Google confirmed that the sounds produced by the live translation service include a hidden mark within the sound wave, which the human ear cannot hear, but it helps the company’s tools detect sounds created by artificial intelligence.

However, specialists believe that this mark does not represent complete protection, as it may face attempts at tampering or modification, but it remains an important step in trying to distinguish between real sound and artificial sound.

Google is not alone in the race to develop smart translation, as it is competing with other technology companies that have provided models based on artificial intelligence to facilitate multilingual communication.

Companies such as OpenAI have developed models for simultaneous voice translation, and Microsoft has provided tools specifically directed to companies and institutions, helping employees who speak different languages ​​to communicate, with a focus on protecting institutional data and the ability to work even in some cases without a network connection.

While some see these technologies as the beginning of a new era in which language barriers decline, the biggest question remains: Will smart translation make the world closer, or will it open a new door to the challenges of trust and digital security?