Google adds 110 languages to translation service

TAIPEI (TVBS News) — Google announced on Thursday (June 27) that it is expanding its translation services to support 110 additional languages, using the PaLM 2 large language model for translations.

New Languages Supported

The new languages include Afar, Manx, NKo, Punjabi (Shahmukhi), Tamazight (Amazigh), and Cantonese, among others. Google stated that the newly added languages have over 614 million users worldwide, accounting for approximately 8% of the global population.

Google noted that the usage of each language varies, with some having over 100 million users, while others have no active users but are still being preserved. The tech giant mentioned in its official blog that regional varieties, dialects, and different spelling standards are considered when adding language support.

Challenges and Future Plans
Google indicated that Cantonese was among the languages its users have long requested. However, its overlap with Mandarin in writing made data gathering and model training quite challenging.

The addition of these 110 languages is part of Google's AI-supported 1,000 Languages Initiative, announced in 2022. Currently, the number of supported languages stands at 243.

In comparison, Apple's translation service currently supports just over 20 languages.