- By Henry Faulkner Brittany
- June 27, 2022
Zoom real-time translation for video calls is expected to launch soon that will translate the spoken video calls in other languages.
Zoom translation capabilities will be acquired by buying a German startup called Kites, which is under development. Al-A powerful algorithm for ‘machine translation’ of other languages in real-time.
The company is looking to one day offer “multilingual translation capabilities” to the Zoom users on Tuesday. “MT (Machine Translation) solutions are important in enhancing the platform for Zoom customers around the world,” said Velchamy Sankarlingam, President of Products and Engineering.
Universal Zoom real-time translation capabilities aim to make zoom indispensable for international exchanges.
Currently, Zoom which is a Video Conferencing software allows a meeting to host several human interpreters and integrates the video calls with closed captioning services.
But the company aims to offer a real-time automated translation service. (In contrast, Microsoft offered Skype Translator starting in 2015.)
In February, Zoom announces the preparation of break down language barriers by offering an automatic closed captioning service, dubbed Live Transcription, which it plans to launch this fall. Those who request access will get a free approach.
As for Kites, in 2015 the German Startup was created to acquire the latest advancements in speech translation technology in academia and turn them into products. A team of 12 research scientists from the German startup will now work with Zoom’s engineering team.
“We know Zoom is the best partner for Kites to help advance our mission and we are excited to see what comes next under Zoom’s incredible innovation engine,” said Kites’ co-founders Alex Waibel and Sebastian Stüker.