Machines have seemed to quickly master many tasks that it’s taken humans years to learn, like chess, drawing images, composing music, and grading students’ work. When it comes to the translation industry, you have to ask yourself when and how machines will replace the human translator.
Machines already grasp synonyms in most cases, which, at first, seemed to be threatening to the professional translator industry. However, that was not the case.
Recognizing shades of emotion and context is one of the problems with machine translation. People, in many respects, are not entirely capable of recognizing these subtleties. People still program computers, so it is hard to comprehend that robots will completely replace translators.
The translation of artificial intelligence in recent years
AI-assisted translation is advancing in conjunction with AI’s rapid development. Gradually, some individuals are arguing that AI translation should take the role of manual translation, and others are even proposing that AI translation be prioritized above human translation. This has caused concerns for professional translators in the industry.
In truth, there is no reason for translators to be overly concerned; I believe that such a situation will not be achievable over the next few decades, and that now is an excellent opportunity to improve manual translation. Although artificial intelligence translation is still in its infancy and can translate phrases and dialogue, it is simple to use.
It’s far too early to to consider machine translation completely replacing human translators. Instead of “replacement,” it is preferable to say “assistance.” If AI translation can’t replace human translation, it could be that the growth of artificial intelligence translation will be a big help for translators. This tool can help a professional translator work quickly and accurately.
Google translate
When Google Translate initially arrived, it looked to be on its way to taking the livelihood of translators. Everyone quickly learned, however, that robots are not rivals.
Google Translate does not appear to have changed much in terms of what it delivers; it still translates, although in a weird and clunky manner. However, this is a useful and free tool for folks who do not speak a foreign language and can be used at home or at work. But, it is unsuitable and even harmful for the translation of medical texts, papers, technical instructions, and other significant material. In reality, no ultra-modern robot will ever be able to replace a human being’s spirit, his flight of thought, or his sense of humor.
Why can’t machines replace human translators?
The art of translation will not go away in the near future, but it will evolve. The translation industry, like so many others, is undergoing rapid change. The debate remains as to whether robots will completely replace people as translators. Machine translation can help translators, but it cannot totally replace them. Here are a few reasons why machines will never be able to replace human translators:
- Language evolution: Language is exceedingly complicated and difficult to formalize in the same way that a mathematical problem is. Because machine translators are unable to comprehend the content of a phrase, they may select inappropriate terminology.
Languages are always changing. Not only will vocabulary change, but grammar will as well. Some terms and ideas that exist now did not exist one or two decades ago. When it comes to responding to the shifting dynamics of language, humans are in a far better position.
- Robots cannot understand a culture: Unlike robots, humans may do better translations due to their cultural and situational awareness. Another thing that humans excel at over robots is perceiving how people write. Diverse cultures find different things amusing, and linguistic variations might render creative wordplay worthless. For example, the translation isn’t excellent if the joke is now 100 percent right, but no one laughs.
- Human mind is more versatile: Machine learning is fantastic at converting a piece that follows a set of rules. Language, however, has not established parameters, is relatively flexible, and has a personal touch. Because it involves poetry, comedy, emotions, and puns, a machine may to effectively translate it. Furthermore, machine translators cannot admit (or correct) their errors.
