For many years now, it has been very simple to translate anything on the Internet. There are a multitude of websites that are able to do so, such as Google Translate, DeepL or Reverso. But, in recents months, a new stage has been reached in the translation world. It’s now possible to translate a video live, with the preservation of the voice and the intonations of the people speaking. This revolution is possible thanks to artificial intelligence developed by a Californian company, HeyGen.
How does HeyGen work?
HeyGen, an artificial intelligence software, can translate any videos, including live ones, in eight different languages. These include French, English, Spanish, Italian, Deutsch, Polish, Portuguese and Hindi. HeyGen goes beyond simple translation as it is a complete software. Indeed, with translation, HeyGen is able to modify the lip movement of the person speaking in the video, in order to adapt it to the desired language. Moreover, the artificial intelligence keeps the original voice, emotion and intensity and uses it in the translated language.
Thanks to this artificial intelligence, some videos have gone viral on social networks. For instance, a video of Joshua Xu, CEO of HeyGen, saying the same sentence perfectly in eight different languages, had been shared many times on X.
However, HeyGen is not the only company developing this kind of artificial intelligence. Google and YouTube are also doing this, while other companies are trying to market it.
The use of live translation for Spanish football
International football is perhaps one of the best targets for this type of translation, with many viewers all around the world. After each game, some players are interviewed by journalists in order to analyze their performance. However, when viewers on TV do not understand the language spoken by the player, this can become a problem and make the interview pointless. To provide a solution, LaLiga, the first Spanish division, presented last October an artificial intelligence capable of instantly translating an interview into any language.
In the promotional conference of this novelty, an interview of Antoine Griezmann speaking perfect Arabic was shown. This process will take place for all the interviews in the Spanish championship from 2024 onwards. This will enable viewers from all around the world to understand the interviews, regardless of the language spoken.
The opportunities and dangers of live translation
This type of artificial intelligence is a revolution, because it can break down all linguistic barriers. Thanks to that, anybody can understand a speech, an interview, a video or a program in any language. This unprecedented technology will also make the development of access to a wide range of resources possible. It will then be easier to discover other cultures and learn new things.
Nevertheless, the arrival of this technology raises several questions, and this kind of artificial intelligence can be dangerous in numerous ways. The main source of concern is the future of translating and dubbing professions. Even though the artificial intelligence is not perfect today, it is likely to be perfected over the next few years and is expected to replace these professions. However, the greatest danger of this innovation is the manipulation of information. If nobody checks the translation of certain videos, manipulators could completely change the original version to make someone say something totally different. This process, which is similar to deepfakes, can influence many people at crucial times, such as during the elections.
A legal framework adopted by the European Union
In an attempt to regulate the possible excesses of this type of artificial intelligence, the European Union adopted the Artificial Intelligence Act in 2023. This act aims to regulate artificial intelligence and its marketing. The goal is also to protect citizens’ health, safety and personal data in the face of all these innovations.
Matthias LEVIEUX
Promotion 2023/2024
#sport #artificialintelligence #droit #data
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