OpenAI now has its own translation service with ChatGPT Translate

Google Translate is getting a new competitor with ChatGPT Translate. The translation service from OpenAI, introduced without much fanfare, supports more than 50 languages and can adapt translations to different target groups, such as for children or an academic audience. In contrast to Google Translate, which masters almost 250 languages, ChatGPT Translate cannot yet translate images, documents, or websites and is currently limited to text and voice input with mobile devices.

This means OpenAI is still at the beginning with ChatGPT Translate, while Google has continuously improved and expanded its translation service over the years. Most recently, Google integrated AI into Translate and expanded the learning tool, which supports users in learning a language via Google Translate. In addition, Google now offers a real-time translator that masters more than word-for-word translations.

ChatGPT as an AI translator

OpenAI is initially limiting ChatGPT Translate to text translations in the classic form known from Google Translate, with two text fields for input and output. Like Google, ChatGPT can also detect the language of the input text, or you can manually select the input language in addition to the target language. After translation, the text can be easily copied via an overlaid icon.

However, ChatGPT Translate offers a special feature, as the translation can be adapted in various forms. OpenAI provides four buttons for this: for a more fluent translation, for a formulation in a factual, business style, as well as for children or an academic audience. This leads to the latest AI chatbot, with a correspondingly pre-formatted prompt. This can then be manually adjusted and elaborated or discussed within ChatGPT itself.

Voice input also possible with smartphone

In desktop mode on the PC, the OpenAI translator only allows text translations, but ChatGPT Translate can also use the microphone for voice input in the browser on mobile devices. OpenAI also writes that images can be translated. However, the user interface of ChatGPT Translate currently lacks a way to embed an image. Accordingly, no documents can be uploaded for translation, a function that Google Translate has offered for years.

The actual AI chatbot from OpenAI has already been used by many people for translations since the introduction of ChatGPT at the end of November 2022, but with a dedicated translation service like ChatGPT Translate, OpenAI is emphasizing the importance of this function of the AI chatbot.

(fds)