By Neville Timothy Sanders & Nurin Patra
KUCHING: Artificial intelligence (AI) may be fast and accurate, but it still cannot replicate human nuance and tone in translation.
Founder and Principal Consultant of TL Insights, Singapore, Shelly Bryant stressed that while AI-generated translations have improved, they remain limited in emotionally sensitive and narrative content.
“You still need a human to carry the nuance, especially in personal stories or oral histories,” she said.
“AI tools can deliver up to 85 per cent accuracy in translations, but they often fail to convey tone, cultural context, or personal expression,” she said at the question-and-answer session at Sarawak Media Conference at Sheraton Hotel today.
Bryant said that in journalism, facts and objectivity might be enough.
“But storytelling needs more; it needs feeling,” she said.
She then recommended using back-translation to check AI accuracy, by translating text with one tool and re-translating it back with another to compare results.
“It’s an old method, but still useful. It helps catch where the meaning or tone is off,” she stated.
She also encouraged users to actively refine their prompts when using AI, instead of relying on the first output.
“Tell the AI where it’s wrong. Keep adjusting until it sounds right,” she said.
Bryant added that AI can support translation but should not lead the process.
“AI doesn’t feel or live in our cultures. That’s why humans must still take the lead,” she added.
