In the face of technological advancements, the publishing industry is transforming. Many companies are using AI to assist in book production stages such as cover design and translation.

On 7/7, Betsy Reavley and Fred Freeman, co-founders of Bloodhound Books, launched Globescribe.ai, an AI-powered novel translation service. According to The Bookseller, users simply upload a manuscript, select a language, and the application generates a translated version ready for publication in a few hours. The service currently supports Spanish, German, Italian, and French. Representatives say the application is suitable for publishers and authors who want to enter foreign markets, republish old books, or expand their audience without incurring high costs.

From left to right, Betsy Reavley, Fred Freeman and the chair of the Translators Association Ian Giles. Photo: The Bookseller

From left to right, Betsy Reavley, Fred Freeman and the chair of the Translators Association Ian Giles. Photo: The Bookseller

According to Goodereader, to increase revenue for publishers, many books are translated from English into multiple languages and published worldwide. With traditional translation methods, costs range from 7,000 to 17,500 USD per novel and can take months to complete. With Globescribe, companies can translate books for 100 USD.

Bloodhound Books conducted a test comparing Globescribe's translation with a human translation. The results showed that many readers could not distinguish between the two versions. According to company representatives, in some cases, reviewers found the AI-assisted version to have a better tone and accuracy.

However, many translators are worried about the emergence of AI translation applications. Ian Giles, chair of the Translators Association, told The Bookseller, “I am concerned because every so often there is a new application like Globescribe or Audible, which are trained on our work. It is a misconception that AI is equal to or superior to human translators.”

According to translators, there are several reasons to object to AI. First, this model does not understand context, tone, writing style and has a "limited" vocabulary. Using AI is not considered true translation.

Giles also pointed out that AI versions still require human review. He said, “We do not teach others how to translate, each person has their own approach to a work. If you only use artificial intelligence, it is not translating but checking the product of a machine, which reduces creativity.”

Irish writer and literary translator Frank Wynne called this an editing process, meaning correcting the translation created by AI. When hired for this job, Wynne described the AI translation as "a mess". "I had to arrange it into a complete book; translating from scratch would have been easier and faster," he said.

Wynne also dismissed the argument that AI will save translation costs. “People think it’s cheap because many tools are currently free to use. But that doesn’t mean it’s economical. Every year, artificial intelligence consumes more electricity than Japan and needs a large amount of water to cool data centers. Just because you don’t pay directly doesn’t mean it’s free.”

In addition, translator Lisa Fransson called the use of AI in translation short-sighted. For her, to translate a work, a translator must have knowledge and understanding of the context, geography, history, and culture. "It seems that many people mistakenly think it's just a matter of converting from one language to another. That's the tip of the iceberg; the translator's task is to accurately convey local cultural elements and the spirit of the original work," she said.

Fransson gave the example that many idioms in Swedish would be meaningless if translated literally into English, such as Att glida in på en räkmacka (translated into English as "slide in on a prawn sandwich"), which refers to someone who achieves success without much effort. "I don't understand how a machine would handle these sentences," Fransson said.

In response, Globescribe representative Betsy Reavley said their application has been trained to understand language nuances. “Our system understands the context of the story and the author's writing style. It delivers an accurate translation, while also understanding elements like puns, idioms, and rephrasing them equivalently.” She emphasized that Globescribe focuses on quality, unlike free tools like ChatGPT or DeepL.

“We view translation as an art form and have no intention of replacing humans. Professional translators still have a place in the industry, especially with complex literary works. AI should be embraced rather than feared; if used correctly, it will support humans in the creative field,” Reavley added.

British translator Ros Schwartz remains optimistic but cautious about the AI era. She believes the emergence of artificial intelligence in the book industry cannot "extinguish" the passion of translators. "We translate for authors and readers who are always looking forward to new works," Schwartz said.

The involvement of artificial intelligence in publishing has become a topic of debate in recent years. In March, the Society of Authors (SoA) called on the government to hold Meta accountable for using their books to illegally train the AI model Llama 3. Anthropic AI was also sued for similar reasons; however, at the end of June, the court ruling partially upheld the company’s actions regarding legally purchased and scanned books. At the same time, 70 American authors wrote to publishers, requesting them not to use AI in book production processes.

On the other hand, many are optimistic about the future of publishing. On 12/3, Sam Altman, CEO of OpenAI, the company behind ChatGPT, caused a stir in the literary world when he posted the short story "A Machine-Shaped Hand" written by AI. On X, he commented that the work "conveys the right feeling of superfiction." In Japan, Kohkoku magazine published a work 95% written by ChatGPT, set in a world after humanity's extinction. Writer Rie Kudan, who guided the AI and was responsible for the remaining 5%, said the experience of co-creating with artificial intelligence helped her reflect on the meaning of writing fiction.

Chau Anh (adapted from Goodereader, The Bookseller)