And what it means for your Japanese English translation projects.

Machine translation powered by algorithms and so-called artificial intelligence (AI) have been at the vanguard of the translation industry for well over a decade now. The reason is that machine translation is fast and, probably more importantly, is cheap.

However, did you know scientists estimate it will take at least a generation — 30 years — for machine translation to approach the level of quality that Japanese human translation service is capable of? Truth be had, though, this is a “rolling generation” That is, ever since the 1960’s when machine translation made its debut, it has always been a only a generation away.

Why?

The reason is pretty simply. First, science does not quite understand how kids learn language! It’s kind of like water – It is central to our lives; however, we don’t fully understand the nature of it. Second, science does not fully understand how the brain works, either. It is, therefore, quite obvious to see that it is impossible at this point to endow machines with the skills and knowledge to translate at the quality level that Japanese human translators regularly translate at.

But, here’s the real reason you should be concerned if quality is important for your Japanese translation services requirements:

It’s a well known fact that many translation companies cut costs by using machine translation with post editing by novice translators. That means the quality you get can’t be described as professional quality translation, at all.

And, here’s the real reason why human translators rock:

• University graduates
• Experts knowledgeable in your industry
• Qualified specialist, such as legal business translators
• At least 3 years experience
• Professionals who have passed rigorous evaluation criteria

There’s translation services, and then there’s professional Japanese translation services by Japanese human translators.

What does that means for your Japanese English translation projects?