Google Meet: English-German language translation in real time

The babel fish from "The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy" is becoming more and more realistic. Now Google is also bringing its real-time translator to Germany, which can translate spoken language into spoken language. And the function is also available in German. This is not the case with other providers, such as Apple's new AirPods Pro. The EU is left out here.

It is not a translator that is tied to a device, as with the headphones or as Meta has already introduced for the smart glasses. Instead, the translator can be found in Google Meet. It should therefore primarily be available for meetings. Of course, you can also communicate privately via the service. It is still a beta version. However, initial tests show really good results. The translation is easy to follow. The voice and tone of voice are also similar to the original.

The difficulty with spoken language is that people change sentences in the middle, break off, start again and the overall sentence structure is not as stringent as with written language. The AI model that is responsible for the translations does not take word for word and translate them, but tries, at least in part, to be a real interpreter that conveys the meaning. Google explains this when presenting the new function. Nevertheless, there are small errors in the translation here and there.

The translation in Meet is not first translated into text and then back into speech, as was the case with the first AI models that could do audio. However, Google only explains that the AI works directly at "sound level".

Real-time translator for devices

The real-time translator of spoken language was first presented at Google I/O. It has been available for Pixel devices in the USA for some time, where it translates locally.

The translator is available in Google Meet for subscribers to Google AI Pro and Ultra, as long as the other party has access. The function must be activated as it is a beta version. You also have to select the desired language and agree to the use of data. Processing takes place both locally and in the cloud. In addition to German and English, Spanish, Portuguese, Italian and French are already available.

When asked, Google was unable to say whether integration into future AI glasses or other Google products is also planned. Project Astra is one such project, which involves working on smart glasses and real-time communication with AI, among other things. Google also has a Translate app, but so far it only transcribes spoken language. The text can then be read out again if required. Here, too, the integration of the new language translation would certainly be a good idea.

(emw)