2Today, let’s dive into the differences between machine translation (MT) and AI translation. Translation is an essential service, but often feels inefficient due to the time and high costs involved. This is where machine translation (MT) and AI translation step in. These technologies have advanced rapidly, evolving from simple word-for-word translations to systems that now understand context.
Why has this technology gained such attention? There are three major reasons:
- Increased Efficiency: AI can quickly translate vast amounts of text, saving both time and money.
- Improved Accuracy: AI translation now better understands context, resulting in more natural translations.
- Greater Accessibility: High-quality translation services are now available to everyone.
Curious to learn more about the concepts behind machine and AI translation? Let’s explore the details and differences step by step.
✍️ The Concept and Categories of Machine Translation (MT)
First, let’s take a closer look at machine translation (MT). Broadly speaking, MT refers to computer-generated translations without human intervention. There are several types: rule-based systems that follow linguistic rules defined by humans, statistical machine translation (SMT) that learns patterns from large volumes of translated texts, and example-based systems that rely on past translations. Machine translation dates back to the 1950s, but only in recent years has it achieved a level that feels natural to human readers.
Among these, let’s focus on statistical machine translation (SMT). This system processes large datasets of translated examples, then applies these patterns to new sentences. For instance, when translating “I love you,” SMT will learn that “나는 너를 사랑한다” is more common than “나는 너를 좋아한다” and choose the former.
SMT’s advantage is speed. It can handle volumes that would take a human translator days in a matter of minutes. Moreover, once the system is set up, it can be reused continuously, making it cost-effective—especially for formal or academic content like news articles or research papers.
However, SMT struggles with context. As a result, it sometimes produces awkward translations. It also often fails to understand idioms or culturally specific expressions. Additionally, when new words or expressions appear that aren’t part of its dataset, it struggles to translate them accurately.
✍️ What Makes AI Translation Different?
So, how does AI translation differ? Until recently, AI translation was often grouped together with MT under the general term “machine translation.” However, as AI translation technologies have evolved and become more widely understood, they’ve started to be defined separately.
AI translation uses artificial intelligence, particularly deep learning, to create smarter translations. Instead of merely swapping words, it understands the overall meaning of sentences. AI translation learns from vast datasets of examples, allowing it to produce more natural translations over time.
Among these, neural machine translation (NMT) stands out the most. What is NMT? It’s a method that mimics our brain’s neural networks to generate translations. Although it sounds complex, it simply means that computers, like our brain’s synapses, learn patterns and connections through repeated signals.
NMT translates entire sentences as a whole, rather than breaking them into parts, allowing it to grasp context better and create more natural translations. It can even adjust how the same word is translated based on the sentence’s context, continually improving its output as it learns new expressions.
However, there are limitations:
- Large amounts of data are required to train the system. The more data it learns from, the better the translations will be.
- It’s still difficult to perfectly translate specialized terms or very specific expressions.
- The AI can’t explain why it made a certain translation, as its learning process is not transparent.
That’s why expert review is still needed for critical translations.
✍🏻 Why AI Translation is Gaining Attention in Legal Fields
Now that we’ve explored machine translation (MT) and AI translation (NMT), what are the key differences?
While MT struggles with context, NMT understands and produces more natural translations. For example, MT might translate the idiom “It’s raining cats and dogs” literally as “고양이와 개가 비가 내리고 있다,” which makes no sense. NMT, on the other hand, understands the meaning and translates it as “비가 억수같이 내리고 있다.” This is especially useful for complex sentence structures in specialized fields.
What about speed? MT is generally faster since it follows predefined rules. However, with recent advancements, NMT’s speed has also improved significantly. When dealing with large amounts of text, NMT tends to be more efficient. For instance, when translating a 100-page contract, MT processes each sentence individually, but NMT considers the entire context, providing a faster and more consistent translation.
Bering AI takes full advantage of NMT’s strengths, especially for legal translations. It has been trained on data reviewed by numerous legal experts, allowing it to deliver both accurate and natural translations. It excels at translating specialized legal terms and phrases, making it the perfect tool for legal document translations. If you need precise legal translations, give Bering AI a try. It combines the speed of MT and the accuracy of NMT, offering the best of both worlds.
Translation technologies have evolved from simple word substitution to systems that understand context. Both MT and AI translation continue to evolve, with AI translation increasingly resembling human-level accuracy as it learns from more data.
As these technologies advance, legal translation will continue to improve. In this field, where accuracy is critical, Bering AI stands out. It specializes in legal translations, ensuring precise understanding and translation of complex legal terms and sentences.
Bering AI will be used in even more fields in the future. Beyond basic legal document translation, it will assist with contract drafting, patent documents, and business-related translations. Additionally, its support for multiple languages will make international legal work more manageable.
Would you like to experience the future of legal translation? With Bering AI, you’ll get fast and accurate legal translations. If expert review is necessary, consider trying Bering AI+, which combines the speed of AI with the precision of human expertise.
When it comes to legal translation, Bering AI saves you time and money while delivering the highest quality. Start today!
🚀 Start your legal translation quickly and easily with BeringAI.
🔍 Use BeringAI+ for reliable translations reviewed by experts!
