Ask ChatGPT – June 15, 2023

My Conversations with ChatGPT
Machine Translation (MT) and translations generated by AI have brought about a paradigm shift in the translation industry. The output of MT will continue to improve, especially when associated with clients’ translation memories and human editing. Language Service Providers are adapting and are including MT in their processes, when MT is applicable. While linguists will continue to be essential in the process, their role will shift from that of translators to validators of content generated by MT. At Excel Translations, we wanted to know what AI thinks about all of this and decided to have an open conversation on the matter with ChatGPT. I will regularly publish a question and ChatGPT’s response, uncensored.

QUESTION: 8

Which documents are not suited for machine translation?

ChatGPT’s Response:

While machine translation has made significant advancements, there are certain types of documents that are generally not well suited for this technology. These include:

1. Legal and Contractual Documents: Legal and contractual texts require precision, accuracy, and attention to detail. Machine translation may not capture the subtle nuances, legal terminology, and specific contextual meanings required in such documents. Human translators with expertise in legal translation are typically preferred.
2. Medical and Healthcare Documents: Medical and healthcare documents involve complex terminology, sensitive information, and potential risks if mistranslated. Accurate translation is crucial to ensure patient safety and regulatory compliance. Human translators with subject matter expertise in the medical field are typically employed for such content.
3. Creative and Literary Works: Literary texts, poetry, creative writing, and artistic works often rely on cultural references, wordplay, idiomatic expressions, and subjective interpretation. Machine translation struggles to capture the artistic nuances and emotional depth conveyed in such texts. Human translators with a deep understanding of cultural context and creativity are preferred for these types of documents.
4. Marketing and Advertising Materials: Marketing content requires localization, cultural adaptation, and persuasive language that resonates with the target audience. Machine translation may not fully capture the intended message, tone, and impact of marketing campaigns. Human translators with marketing expertise are typically employed to ensure effective communication.
5. Highly Technical and Specialized Documents: Documents with highly technical content, such as scientific research papers, engineering specifications, or software documentation, often contain domain-specific terminology and complex concepts. Machine translation may struggle to accurately translate such specialized content, which requires the expertise of human translators with subject matter knowledge.

In summary, while machine translation has its benefits, certain document types still require the skills, expertise, and cultural understanding of human translators to ensure accurate and contextually appropriate translations.