SlatorPod

Florian and Esther discuss the language industry news of the week, with key highlights from the latest Slator Pro Guide: The Future of Language Industry Jobs . The guide focuses on the future of jobs and freelance opportunities in the language industry, noting the impact of AI on employment trends. The duo analyze the 2024 Inc. 5,000 list , which includes 14 LSPs this year, with companies like PGL...

Spence Green , CEO and Co-founder of LILT , the AI solution provider for enterprise translation, joins SlatorPod. On the podcast, Spence discusses the evolution of LILT 's end-to-end platform, which integrates AI models with human verification to ensure quality standards. The CEO notes a significant shift in enterprise approaches towards localization, now being more software-driven rather tha...

Paul Ghio, Co-founder of AI video localization startup Supernative , joins SlatorPod to talk about how language AI is reshaping how we create and consume content globally. Paul shares how his passion for helping creators and his experience with internationalization at Shutterstock and Yelp led him to start Supernative, with a mission to democratize video localization using AI. The Co-founder outli...

Florian and Esther discuss the language industry news of the week, with a nearly USD 4m settlement involving Language Line Services and ongoing disputes in Canada , where freelance interpreters are protesting against unpaid breaks during debates. Florian highlights a YouTube video about UN simultaneous interpreting and the rigorous standards and working conditions for UN interpreters. Esther share...

João Graça, Co-founder and CTO of language operations platform Unbabel , joins SlatorPod to talk about the present and future of large language models ( LLMs ) and their broad impact across all things translation and localization. First, the CTO explains how Unbabel was founded to address language barriers for people using services like Airbnb, combining MT with human validation to improve transla...

Florian and Esther discuss the language industry news of the week, with a legal battle in the UK involving public sector interpreting and the classification of interpreters as freelancers or workers, which could significantly impact the business models of language service providers (LSPs). The duo explores Google Translate's recent expansion to support over 200 languages, adding 110 new ones...

Josh Goldsmith, Geek-In-Chief of techforword , joins SlatorPod to talk about his multiple roles as a linguist, conference interpreter, and educator. Josh shares his multifaceted background in linguistics and language teaching, highlighting his passion for language and education, which led him to co-found techforword. Josh explains the current landscape of conference interpreting , noting a shift b...

Florian and Esther discuss the language industry news of the week, giving a recap of SlatorCon London and exploring some use cases from the Slator Pro Guide: Language AI for Consumers . Florian talks about Andrew Ng's recent project on agentic machine translation , which involves using large language models ( LLMs ) to create a virtual language service provider (LSP). The duo touch on Apple&a...

Marina Ilari, CEO of Terra Translations and Terra Localizations , joins SlatorPod to talk about her professional journey and the world of game localization . The CEO shares the strategic decision to create Terra Localizations in 2008 to cater specifically to the gaming industry's requirements. She attributes the company's growth to the ability to offer boutique-level services while scali...

Georg Ell , CEO of Phrase , returns to SlatorPod for round 2 to talk about the accelerating adoption of generative technologies and AI. Discussing the broader implications of AI, Georg notes that business leaders are increasingly focused on language technology for its cost, return on investment, and time-to-value benefits. Georg points out that these technologies are not just about improving trans...

Mary Kazamias , CEO of TRSB , joins SlatorPod to talk about her journey starting as a translator and transitioning through various roles to leading Canada's largest language service provider (LSP). The podcast explores the balance between government and private sector clients in Canada, with Mary noting that while the government produces more content, TRSB serves more customers in the private...

Florian and Esther discuss the language industry news of the week, with the US Bureau of Labor Statistics sharing their projections for growth in translation and interpreting jobs between 2022-2032. The duo delves into Reddit's earnings call , where machine translation is emphasized as a key driver for international growth and content accessibility. Florian touches on recent AI dubbing develo...

Charles Campbell joins SlatorPod to talk about the evolution of tbo. from a translation company to a diversified business, exploring challenges, strategies, and the impact of industry changes. The President and Founder discusses the talent landscape, mentioning challenges such as layoffs, hiring fluctuations, and the impact of political changes in Argentina. He shares insights on the local economy...

Daniel Wilson, Founder and CEO of XRI Global , joins SlatorPod to talk about the company's focus on low-resource languages and its efforts to bring digital equality to communities lacking online language support. With a background in linguistics and research on endangered languages in the Caucasus Mountains, Wilson's journey led him to establish XRI Global to address the challenge of bui...

Florian and Esther discuss the language industry news of the week, with SlatorCon London , scheduled for May 23rd, announcing the speaker lineup, including a Keynote presentation from Iris Orriss of Meta. They then discuss how enterprises are becoming increasingly comfortable launching fully automated language AI features, labeling it the “normalization of language AI”. The duo talk about the unpr...

Dr. B.J. Woodstein , Professor, Translator, and Writer, joins SlatorPod to talk about translation theory and its implications for literary translators, while also shedding light on the professional challenges, nuances, and ethical considerations. B.J. discusses her upcoming book, “ Translation Theory for Literary Translators ”, where she aims to demystify translation theory and make it accessible...

Mihai Vlad , the Founder of Video Highlight and former General Manager of Language Weaver, joins SlatorPod to talk about his entrepreneurial journey and insights into the language AI startup landscape. Mihai discusses his latest venture, Video Highlight, which aims to solve the inefficiency of extracting valuable information from lengthy videos by providing automatic transcription, timestamped sum...

Chris Reynolds , the EVP and General Manager of Worldwide Localization and Fulfillment at Deluxe , joins SlatorPod to talk about the complexities of dubbing and the potential impact of AI on the industry. Chris discusses the different elements in the dubbing process, including voice casting, script adaptation, and post-production, as well as the challenges of tight timelines, particularly with the...

Jordan Evans, the CEO of Language Network , joins SlatorPod to talk about the evolution of his family-founded language service provider (LSP) and his sales-focused growth strategy. Jordan's professional trajectory began with a blend of sales, tech startups, and a stint as a linguist and translator, before acquiring Language Network and achieving significant growth . Regarding growth strategie...

Florian and Esther discuss the language industry news of the week, with Head of Research Anna Wyndham joining to give a breakdown of the 2024 Slator Language AI 50 Under 50 , a list highlighting 50 of the newest and most notable language AI companies. The list focuses on 50 language AI companies under 50 months old, showcasing their innovations in speech-to-text, machine translation, speech synthe...

Florian and Esther discuss the language industry news of the week, with Women in Localization opening a new chapter in Switzerland and SlatorCon coming to Silicon Valley on September 5th. Florian shares insights from RWS ’ Annual General Meeting, where under the new leadership of Chairman Julie Southern, the language service provider (LSP) highlighted its resilience amid global uncertainty. Esther...

Florian and Esther discuss the language industry news of the week with a first look at the newly released 2024 Slator Language Service Provider Index ( LSPI ) where they unpack the key findings from over 250 LSPs on the ranking. Leading the 2024 LSPI is Super Agency TransPerfect, who recently appointed Jin Lee as the new Co-CEO . Lee began as a project manager at the Super Agency before working th...

In the landmark 200th episode of the SlatorPod, we are joined by Anja Jones, Managing Director of AJT , to talk about the language service provider’s (LSP’s) journey to becoming a B Corp , a certification for businesses balancing profit with social and environmental responsibility. Anja touches upon the impact of large language models ( LLMs ), expressing concerns about ethical implications, copyr...

In this week’s SlatorPod, we are joined by Bart Maczynski, the VP of Machine Learning at Language Weaver , the translation tech brand of Super Agency RWS , to talk about the challenges and advancements in enterprise-grade machine translation ( MT ). The discussion delves into the distinctions between enterprise and consumer-grade MT, with challenges including data security, scalability, adaptabili...

John Tinsley, the VP of AI Solutions at language AI agency Translated , joins SlatorPod to talk about the challenges, advancements, and future directions of AI in the language industry. John shares his journey from founding machine translation (MT) pioneer ICONIC, selling it during the height of the pandemic to RWS, and now his current role focusing on connecting technology and capabilities with c...