Academic publisher Taylor & Francis (T&F) has announced an initiative to employ artificial intelligence (AI) translation tools aimed at providing English-language readers access to a wider selection of books that would otherwise be unavailable to them.

Background on AI Partnerships

Last year, T&F, part of the Informa group which also owns Routledge, became the inaugural UK-based publisher to establish multi-million-pound agreements with various tech companies, including Microsoft. These agreements involve utilizing the publisher’s backlist to aid in training AI chatbots, raising questions about authors’ rights as it proceeds without compensation for creators or prior consent.

Testing and Quality Assurance

According to statements from T&F, the company has spent the past year rigorously testing AI translation capabilities. The publisher claims to have developed advanced tools that will enhance the range of translated titles published under its CRC Press and Routledge imprints, emphasizing that quality and accuracy will not be compromised.

Jeremy North, managing director at T&F, noted, “We have always been aware that our translations programme represented just the tip of the iceberg, which is why we were keen to explore whether AI could help.”

Concerns from the Translation Community

Despite the potential benefits of AI translation, the initiative has faced criticism from various sectors, including the Society of Authors. Critics argue that AI-generated translations threaten the integrity of creative work. Translators express fears about the long-term impact on their profession.

Lisa Fransson, a translator and novelist, articulated these concerns, stating, “Advanced AI cannot replace human translation… A human translator is able to consider these variables on a case-to-case basis, where a machine can only ever choose the likely next word based on the information it’s been fed.”

Ethics and Fairness in AI Usage

Anna Ganley, CEO of the Society of Authors, raised ethical concerns about the AI tools being utilized. She mentioned the risks associated with using AI trained on potentially unlawfully sourced data, underscoring a commitment to uphold the interests of human creators amid the rise of AI technologies. “With the emergence of AI, this inequity has only become worse,” she indicated.

Future Steps and Community Initiatives

While T&F assures that AI-translated manuscripts will undergo thorough editing and review by human editors and the original authors before publication, the choice to move in this direction remains contentious.

Other publishers, such as Veen Bosch & Keuning in the Netherlands, have also begun exploring AI translation, although on a smaller scale, indicating a growing trend in the industry.

Independent presses like Rossum Press also harness AI for translation, aiming to bring lesser-known novels into the English market. Meanwhile, emerging self-publishing models incorporate AI-assisted translation, pointing to a significant shift in the publishing landscape.