Skip to main content
  1. Home
  2. Mobile
  3. News

Google Translate just got its biggest update ever

By
Showcasing the Google Translate app on an Android device.
Bryan M. Wolfe / Digital Trends

For those who enjoy using Google Translate, here’s some exciting news: The translation app will soon support an additional 110 languages. Prior to this update, Google Translate had 133 total languages. In other words, Google is nearly doubling Translate’s language library.

In a recent blog update, Google mentioned leveraging AI models to increase the number of languages supported by the Google Translate app. Specifically, the PaLM 2 large language model makes these language additions possible.

Recommended Videos

The new languages coming to Google Translate include Afar, Cantonese, Manx, NKo, Punjabi (Shahmukhi), Tamazight (Amazigh), and Tok Pisin — just to name a few.

Related

Afar is a tonal language spoken in Djibouti, Eritrea, and Ethiopia. Cantonese has long been one of the most requested languages for Google Translate. Manx is the Celtic language of the Isle of Man, while NKo is a standardized form of the West African Manding languages that unifies many dialects into a common language. Punjabi (Shahmukhi) is a variety of Punjabi written in the Perso-Arabic script (Shahmukhi) and is the most spoken language in Pakistan. Tamazight (Amazigh) is a Berber language spoken across North Africa, while Tok Pisin is an English-based creole and the lingua franca of Papua New Guinea.

About 25% of the new languages come from Africa, representing Google’s largest African language expansion to date. These include Fon, Kikongo, Luo, Ga, Swati, Venda, and Wolof.

Google Translate on a smartphone.
SOPA Images / Getty Images

As Google explains, “From Cantonese to Qʼeqchiʼ, these new languages represent more than 614 million speakers, opening up translations for around 8% of the world’s population. Some are major world languages with over 100 million speakers. Others are spoken by small communities of Indigenous people, and a few have almost no native speakers but active revitalization efforts.”

PaLM 2, short for Pathways Language Model 2, is the next version of the original PaLM, and it comes with significant improvements in several areas. These improvements include multilingual expertise, coding capabilities, and enhanced reasoning abilities. With PaLM 2, Google Translate can learn closely related languages more efficiently. Additionally, Google has partnered with expert linguists and native speakers to further support a broader range of language varieties and spelling conventions in the future.

Through the 1,000 Languages Initiative, Google hopes to build AI models supporting the 1,000 most-spoken languages worldwide.

Editors’ Recommendations

Topics
Bryan M. Wolfe
Bryan M. Wolfe
Mobile and A/V Freelancer
Bryan M. Wolfe has over a decade of experience as a technology writer. He writes about mobile.
Microsoft’s forgotten Android phone just got its final update
The Microsoft Surface Duo 2 has a unique two-screen design.

Remember the Microsoft Surface Duo 2? It wasn't exactly the popular kid in school — especially at its launch price — but it did represent a major improvement over the first Duo. Unfortunately, there isn't likely to be a Surface Duo 3. It was originally intended to be another folding phone, but Microsoft canceled any development or production for it. Now, the Surface Duo 2 is receiving its last update.

Microsoft released a final Android 12 update for the Surface Duo 2 just a little over a week before it's scheduled for its end-of-life security update on October 21. According to Android Headlines, the update was first noticed by Reddit user u/Affectionate-Tax9885, who shared a screenshot of the download screen and the size of the file: a surprisingly minuscule 54.76 MB.

Read more
Verizon is shutting down its popular texting app. Here’s why
Verizon banner splashed across iPhone screen.

RCS messaging is the new hotness, and it's so popular that Verizon is shutting down its popular Verizon Messages and Message Plus apps. According to Verizon's FAQ page, the apps are being shut down because the company wants you to have "the best messaging experience."

In other words, now that RCS messaging is readily available between Android and iOS platforms, there's no need for a third-party application to fill in the gap. Verizon says that Google Messages provides an overall better experience, comes preloaded on all Verizon Android devices, and is able to interact with Apple Messages, too.

Read more
The Google Pixel 9a just leaked. Here’s a look at its new design
Pixel 9a 5K render.

Google just released the Pixel 9 line in August, but that doesn’t mean it’s done with the Pixel 9 series. A report from Android Headlines and OnLeaks shows us some high-resolution renders of what the Pixel 9a will look like. It is expected to launch in 2025, around the time of Google I/O. in the spring

However, unlike previous A-series Pixel devices, the Pixel 9a doesn’t follow the design of the main Pixel 9 series. This year, Google significantly redesigned the Pixel 9 line in terms of the camera bar, changing it to a pill-shaped camera island instead of extending into the phone’s frame.

Read more