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Translators' order cautions public about risks of using artificial intelligence for translation
With the use of AI in translation exploding, Quebec's professional order for translators, terminologists and interpreters is sounding the alarm. Although the technology has great potential, it also poses great risks.
MONTRÉAL, Oct. 16, 2024 /CNW/ - Faced with the rapid rise of AI-based tools and their growing use by the general public, particularly for translation, the Ordre des traducteurs, terminologues et interprètes agréés du Québec (OTTIAQ) is alerting the public about the risks of failing to work with a qualified professional when using these tools.
Despite the
innovative opportunities created by automated translation tools and chatbots
such as ChatGPT, these technologies have their limitations. As OTTIAQ points
out, errors in meaning are frequent—particularly in complex or specialized
documents—and unacceptable cultural biases are often embedded in the output. In
translation, such mistakes can have serious legal, financial or reputational
consequences.
Case in point:
a pharmacy customer received an email that wished her dead. The culprit? An
automated translation. Obviously this shocked the customer, but it was the
pharmacy's reputation that truly suffered.
Privacy and data security are also at risk, since most free translation tools don't provide any guarantee that the text fed into them will be kept confidential. Moreover, they actually use that data to produce other content, which goes against Canadian and Quebec privacy and data protection laws.
"Having a rigorous, human-led process is the only way to ensure reliable, secure, quality language services," says OTTIAQ president Betty Cohen. "We strongly recommend working with certified translators to avoid potentially costly errors."
As a professional order, OTTIAQ has a legal mandate to protect the public. It does so by informing the public, setting high professional standards, and promoting the expertise of its over 2,800 certified members.
OTTIAQ's position on artificial intelligence in translation
The following position on the use of artificial intelligence in translation has been approved by the Board of Directors of the Ordre des traducteurs, terminologues et interprètes agréés du Québec (OTTIAQ). Given its mission to protect the public, OTTIAQ believes it is important for everyone to understand the potential uses and limitations of artificial intelligence in translation, interpretation and terminology. OTTIAQ encourages its members and the public to share this information and stay abreast of the latest technological developments in order to use these tools safely and effectively.
To fulfill its mandate and provide better guidelines for the work of translators, interpreters and terminologists, OTTIAQ must keep close tabs on technological advances that have an impact on the language professions. The rapid pace of these advances can be seen in the advent of generative artificial intelligence and tools such as ChatGPT. The general public now has access to automated translation tools that are fast and easy to use, but come with a high degree of risk. As a professional order governed by Quebec's Professional Code, OTTIAQ believes it has a duty to inform the public of the benefits and drawbacks of the automated translation and interpretation tools currently available.
What you need to know
Translation is one of the main applications of artificial intelligence. Neural machine translation (NMT), which is based on the neural networks used in AI, appeared on the market in 2016, well before generative artificial intelligence.
Professional translators were already using other digital technologies and quickly added NMT to their toolboxes, but not without putting processes in place to detect and correct its mistakes. They were thus early adopters of this revolutionary technology.
The advent of
generative artificial intelligence hasn't actually changed those processes
much. What is has done is provide language professionals with new tools that
can improve their workflow, particularly when researching terminology. Yet
academic and corporate studies have shown that dedicated automated translation
tools produce more specific and accurate translations than ones based on
generative AI. While translations produced by generative AI are based on whole
documents and can be stylistically superior, they often contain numerous
inaccuracies—the product of AI's tendency to make things up, called a
"hallucination." In such situations, the involvement of a language
professional becomes even more crucial.
Automated
translation can be very useful for content that is straightforward or general
in nature. It is far less so for more technical or sensitive documents, where a
poor translation can have serious physical, mental, financial, legal or
reputational consequences. In the same way, automated interpretation apps are
helpful for simple conversations—when travelling, for example—but cannot
replace the services of a professional medical or court interpreter.
In the interest
of public safety, automated translation and interpretation tools must be used
wisely. That means that whenever there are real-world consequences, a language
professional should be involved.
Further considerations
Being easily accessible to the general public, automated translation tools and generative AI are often presented as miracle solutions for translation and interpretation. But along with the risk of sheer mistakes, there are other reasons to proceed with caution:
OTTIAQ's position
OTTIAQ welcomes
new technology and encourages members to use it to provide the best possible
language services. But it also calls on them to integrate these tools into an
OTTIAQ-approved process, which must always include at least one round of
quality control by a professional. In OTTIAQ's view, this is the only way for
language professionals to uphold their code of ethics and properly protect the
public.
By the same
token, OTTIAQ calls on the public not to use free automated translation tools
without due consideration for the risks outlined above and strongly advises
anyone in need of quality language services to work with a conscientious,
certified professional.
Key takeaways
For more
information: Soumaya Boumazza, Communications Officer, sboumazza@ottiaq.org, 514-845-4411, ext.
1222
SOURCE: Ordre des traducteurs, terminologues et interprètes agréés du Québec - Organization
Profile
Ordre des traducteurs, terminologues
et interprètes agréés du Québec
Emne: Open
letter to Veen Bosch & Keuning in regards to the usage of AI to translate
books into English language - CEATL
6 Nov, 2024
OPEN LETTER TO VEEN BOSCH & KEUNING
IN REGARDS TO THE USAGE OF AI
TO TRANSLATE BOOKS INTO ENGLISH LANGUAGE
We
are horrified to read in The Bookseller about Veen Bosch
& Keuning’s “limited experiment with some Dutch authors, for their books to
be translated into English language using AI”. Veen Bosch & Keuning claim
that they are “not creating books with AI, it all starts and ends with human
action” – yet this is patently not the case.
As
CEATL points out in its Statement on Artificial Intelligence, “AI usage standardises
translations, impoverishing written cultures and languages in general through,
among other things, priming bias and self-pollution.” Studies have
demonstrated that post-editing a literary text generated by AI takes much longer.
Furthemore,
literary translators are already struggling to make a living with their work, a
work that requires a great deal of knowledge, creativity and many different
skills. The publishing sector cannot do without well-trained literary
translators; to pretend otherwise would mean impoverishing the cultural
landscape as a whole.
We
strongly believe that it is very much in interest of every stakeholder in the
book chain – translators, authors, publishers and especially readers – to keep
literary translation human. Machines do not translate, they merely generate
textual material; books are written by human authors and should be translated
by human translators. Imagination, understanding and creativity are
intrinsically human and should not be left out of any literary text.
Regards,
The Board of CEATL
Fælles erklæring om ophavsret og AI, link/
Declarations, statements and letters on AI, translation, writing, copyright and tools
Joint Declaration from Danish Rights Organizations
Human Creativity Must Not Be Undermined by AI
(Some texts are translated from Danish and Norwegian into English by Copilot, and postedited by myself.)
Human creativity has always been a cornerstone of Denmark’s cultural identity, and the creative work of artists enriches our society and shapes our worldview and values in countless ways.
However, human culture is now being significantly challenged by providers of artificial intelligence (AI)—particularly generative AI services. It is our responsibility as a society to preserve human artistic expression, and one of the most crucial tools to support that goal is copyright legislation.
OTTIAQ's position on artificial intelligence in translation. Translators' order cautions public about risks of using artificial intelligence for translation, link/
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Open letter to Veen Bosch & Keuning in regards to the usage of AI to translate books into English language, link/
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No-one left behind, no language left behind, no book left behind _ CEATL
Since the beginning of 2023, the spectacular evolution of artificial intelligence, and in particular the explosion in the use of generative AI in all areas of creation, has raised fundamental questions and sparked intense debate. While professional organisations are coordinating to exert as much influence as possible on negotiations regarding the legal framework for these technologies (see in particular the statement co-signed by thirteen federations of authors’ and performers’ organisations), CEATL has drafted its own statement detailing its stance on the use of generative AIs in the field of literary translation. Link/
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‘It gets more and more confused’: can AI replace translators?
A Dutch publisher has announced that it will use AI to translate some of its books – but those in the industry are worried about the consequences if this becomes the norm, link/
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AI, artificial intelligence, position
paper, SFT, Société française des traducteurs
Humans at the heart of technology
On 13 June, the Société française des
traducteurs (SFT), France’s union for professional translators and
interpreters, published a statement on artificial intelligence based on the
results of a survey of its members in November and December 2023. The SFT is
voicing the concerns of the professions it represents that humans should remain
at the heart of this technology and that, if they continue unchecked,
generative AI solutions used for translation and interpreting could lead to the
impoverishment of both language and of critical thinking, the very essence of
communication – and of our humanity. Read here/
Read the statement here/
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Commission publishes first draft of General-Purpose Artificial Intelligence Code of Practice
The Commission has published the first draft of the General-Purpose Artificial Intelligence (AI) Code of Practice. Link here/
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Statement on AI training
“The unlicensed use of creative works for training generative AI is a major, unjust threat to the livelihoods of the people behind those works, and must not be permitted.” Link here/
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The Danish Agency for Digital Government launches guidelines for public authorities and businesses on the use of generative artificial intelligence (AI). (Link in Danish) Link/
Translators fear and embrace New Technology
For some translators, technology causes technostress. For others, it’s an indispensable assistant. Discover the five types of technostress.
The translation industry is once again undergoing a transformation. New technology—particularly generative AI—has rapidly changed the conditions for how translators work. For some, it’s already an indispensable tool, while others fear it threatens their livelihood.
“No one can predict the future, but generative AI will definitely become a tool that many will use,” says Tina Paulsen Christensen, associate professor at Aarhus University, where she researches AI-based technologies. (Link in Danish) Link/
Written by: The Language Council of Norway
How good is ChatGPT in Norwegian, really? The Language Council has tested the robot’s language use in both Bokmål and Nynorsk. (Link in Norwegian) Link/
A report of the Register of Copyrights, January 2025
United States Copyright Office, link/
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Documento: Guía para definir una política editorial sobre la Inteligencia Artificial
Documento: "Pautas para definir una política editorial de uso de la Inteligencia Artificial" El desarrollo de la Inteligencia Artificial es probablemente el desafío más importante que nos toque vivir como humanidad en este siglo, e implicará transformaciones en todos los órdenes de la vida. Podemos criticarla y tener una mirada escéptica sobre el futuro al que nos va a llevar, y hay argumentos y razones sobradas para ello. Pero su impacto (positivo y negativo) es inevitable, y debemos comprenderla y aprender a convivir con esta tecnología. Los seres humanos hemos evolucionado de la mano de las tecnologías que hemos inventado. Pero la IA es especial, porque nos obliga a cuestionarnos cuál es nuestra esencia y qué nos distingue de nuestro entorno.
Por Daniel Benchimol- Director de Proyecto451
Descarga del documento aquí/
Curious Children Deserve Good Images
January 30, 2025 — by Lone Nikolajsen
“…‘An attempt that didn’t succeed.’” That’s how Kaya Hoff, director of the publisher Forlaget Carlsen, described to several media outlets her company’s decision regarding… previous publications are typically illustrated with photographs or drawings, especially when covering prehistoric animals.
This time, however, the illustrations were meant to depict animals in very specific situations. And as Sebastian Klein said on P1’s Orientering, “…the idea to use AI.” In Weekendavisen, he refers to the publication as “a misstep.”
Images Devoid of Fascination
As is often the case with missteps, the flaws in the images from the now-withdrawn first edition of Denmark’s 100 Craziest… are evident… (Link in Danish)… Link/
Harmful Effects of Machine Translation and Their Mitigation: A Preliminary Taxonomy Mikel L. Forcada Prompsit Language Engineering While initially designed almost seventy years ago to enable the understanding of documents written in a foreign language—probably their main public use nowadays—machine translation is also routinely used to generate content to be published, ideally—but unfortunately not always—after careful editing by translation professionals. During the past few decades, the usefulness of machine translation systems has improved massively in these two usages, but their generalized deployment has brought about—and will bring about—many negative effects. This lecture, based on the chapter of the same title published in The Social Impact of Automating Translation, presents a preliminary taxonomy of the main harmful impacts of machine translation by adopting a structured analysis to identify harming agents, actions, harms, processes, and harmed parties—who did what to whom and how. It further discusses how these harms can be mitigated, and briefly comments on the legal protection available to harmed parties against these harming agents and the actual legal risk incurred by the harming agents. The aim of this analysis is to contribute to the debate of the issues that need to be addressed to foster a responsible and ethical deployment of machine translation. Mikel L. Forcada (Caracas, 1963) retired as a full professor of Computer Languages and Systems at the Universitat d’Alacant in 2024. He is founding partner (2006) and chief research officer of Prompsit Language Engineering. Prof. Forcada initiated the Apertium and Bitextor free/open-source projects. His latest research spans translation technologies and machine learning, with over 70 publications. Powerpoints from the webinar, link/ February 12th, 2025 Lecture in Catalan at 12.00 pm (Central European Time) Lecture in English at 1.00 pm (Central European Time) GMeet and “Germá Colon” Lecture Hall School of Humanities and Social Sciences Universitat Jaume I Spain Organizer: MA program in Researching Translation and Interpreting |
When: Wednesday Feb 12, 2025 ⋅ 12:00 – 14:30 (Central European Time - Madrid) |
Organizer: Esther Monzó Nebot monzo@uji.es ************************* |
AI Images Distort Our Perception of Reality
There is a need for clear and explicit labeling of visual material generated with the help of artificial intelligence. (Link in Danish) link/
Films Created with AI Should Not Carry a Label at the Oscars – That Could Be a Problem
As the technology behind AI continues to improve, it is becoming possible to create films that closely resemble authentic, human-made productions. This could be a tragedy for cinematic art.
The Rundown: The Trump administration just released https://www.whitehouse.gov/wp-content/uploads/2025/07/Americas-AI-Action-Plan.pdf/ an AI Action Plan detailing 90+ policy actions to accelerate the country’s dominance in the sector, including details on AI infrastructure, regulation, and export policy shaped by 10K+ public comments. |
The details: |
|
Why it matters: The AI policy shift under the new administration is real, with the Trump administration’s Action Plan pushing an all-in growth strategy that aims to use deregulation and massive infrastructure investments to secure the lead over China — even if it means stripping safeguards in the process. "Frontier language models" are mentioned on page 11 |
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