Meta releases AI model for translating speech between dozens of languages

Children playground miniatures are seen in front of displayed Meta logo in this illustration taken April 4, 2023. REUTERS/Dado Ruvic/Illustration/File photo

NEW YORK (Reuters) - Facebook parent company Meta Platforms on Tuesday released an AI model capable of translating and transcribing speech in dozens of languages, a potential building-block for tools enabling real-time communication across language divides.

The company said in a blog post that its SeamlessM4T model could support translations between text and speech in nearly 100 languages, as well as full speech-to-speech translation for 35 languages, combining technology that was previously available only in separate models.