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Meta is claiming that its new AI represents a breakthrough in high-quality machine translation

Meta is claiming that its new AI represents a breakthrough in high-quality machine translation
Patrick Devaney

Patrick Devaney

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Ever since Facebook changed its name to Meta, everybody’s focus has been on the metaverse. It seems, however, that Meta has also been working on other big projects incorporating other frontier technologies like AI and machine learning. Today, the company unveiled a new AI model that it says will be a game-changer for language translation. Let’s check it out now.

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Meta has announced via a blog post and YouTube video that its new AI model can translate 200 languages all on its own. The model is called NLLB-200 and it has already been validated by extensive evaluations of translation across all 200 different languages.

One of the reasons why Meta thinks this new model will be a game-changer for translation is because it is able to translate languages that current translation tools still struggle with. The blog post says:

“Fewer than 25 African languages are currently supported by widely used translation tools — many of which are of poor quality. In contrast, NLLB-200 supports 55 African languages with high-quality results. In total, this single model can provide high-quality translations for languages spoken by billions of people around the globe.”

What’s also great news from this announcement is that, on top of using NLLB-200 to support communication across Meta apps and services, the company is also open-sourcing the tool as well as making a variety of research materials available for those who may seek to use it.

Of course, this type of technology will also be useful in a metaverse setting, with Meta saying “… we are closer to one day having systems that enable people to communicate with whomever they choose. We’re excited by what this unlocks in the present and what it could mean for the future…”. Still, however, this is a very positive story that will do a lot to help people feel more included and involved in the growing virtual aspects of our world.

If you are interested in the metaverse you might want to learn about the Facebook Gaming partnership that will give you the tools you need to build your own metaverses.

Patrick Devaney

Patrick Devaney

Patrick Devaney is a news reporter for Softonic, keeping readers up to date on everything affecting their favorite apps and programs. His beat includes social media apps and sites like Facebook, Instagram, Reddit, Twitter, YouTube, and Snapchat. Patrick also covers antivirus and security issues, web browsers, the full Google suite of apps and programs, and operating systems like Windows, iOS, and Android.

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