The Japan Translators Association has issued a statement on the use of AI for “translation and mass export of manga.” In it, the organization expressed concern about the impact of technology on manga quality and how “overreliance” on it could turn human translators “from a valuable human resource into a commodity.” throw it away”.
JAT's statement points out that the quality of AI translations remains lacking, “falling short of the level of quality necessary to adequately portray the nuances, cultural background or personality traits that are important important for a work of fiction. And although AI speeds up the translation process, the organization warns against using “machines to produce large numbers of translated works in a short period of time (according to the official announcement, 50,000 works in 5 year, with a turnaround time as short as 2 days each time). work) risks significantly reducing the value of the work.”
It added, “Poor translations erode consumer trust, opening the door for pirated versions to flourish. Since manga is such an important aspect of Japanese culture and one of the many ways that people are first introduced to Japan, it is all the more important that the words we use to convey the This is not to be underestimated.”
Regarding the impact of AI on professional manga translators, who “have supported the industry for many years,” JAT said it is “deeply concerned about the practice of disregarding so much accumulated experience and skill.” accumulated for the purpose of reducing costs.
JAT's statement comes amid growing AI initiatives in the manga industry. Limiting these to AI translations, there were:
© The simultaneous English release of The Ancient Magus'Bride using AI translation, announced a few weeks after the announcement of the manga's return from hiatus last December. A subsequent statement said the translations would be edited and proofread by professional translators.
→ On April 1, 2024 JST, publisher TO Books announced the launch of the CORONA EX Website for English, featuring a mix of professionally translated and Google-translated manga titles.
At the beginning of May 2024 press release announced the results of Pre-Series A* Funding, “manga localization technology” startup Orange Inc. stated that the funds raised “will be used to develop localized products based on deep learning models and launch their digital comic store in the summer of 2024.”
Orange Inc. also said that there has been “development of a manga-specific localization system since its inception” to address the lack of titles translated into English, which is said to be due to “the translation process difficult and lengthy as well as a limited number of translators. They claim that their proprietary system can translate “up to 500 manga volumes per month… five times the current production capacity of the entire localization market.”
*Shogakukan is one of the sponsors.
Although many different parties are using AI, JAT says that the technology is “extremely unsuited for translating high-context, story-centric text” and that JAT is “deeply concerned that the Public and private industry initiatives to use AI for mass translation and export of manga will harm Japan's soft power.”
JAT concluded the written statement: “We strongly suggest that now is the time for thoughtful and constructive dialogue between cartoonists, businesses (publishers), governments, Translators, translation organizations, readers and all stakeholders should consider the appropriate use of AI and machine translation.”
Source: Press Release
