In the past few years there’s hardly an industry in the world that Artificial Intelligence (AI) hasn’t touched and disrupted. In the language services industry, platforms like Google Translate, DeepL, and Microsoft Translator have given instantaneous translation to the masses.
So, is the human component of translation a thing of the past?
Clearly, the answer is no. At LinguaLinx, we understand that these tools offer speed and convenience, but they need oversight to properly function as a business tool. The workflow of a Language Service Provider (LSP) includes crucial post-editing – human revision of machine-generated translations – to make sure your translations are accurate, legal and culturally nuanced.
Let’s take a look at the main reasons why AI translations still need the human touch.
Language Nuances and Idioms
Languages are filled with idioms, cultural references, and subtle nuances that machines struggle to understand.
For example, imagine the direct translation of the English phrase “it’s raining cats and dogs” in another language? In this case you would have to choose an alternate phrase meaning it’s raining heavily that’s localized to your target audience, otherwise you’ll lose your readers.
The problem? AI often translates word-for-word or based on statistical probability, which can strip phrases of their intended meaning.
Human editors can recognize idiomatic expressions and replace them with culturally appropriate equivalents in the target language. This is vital for preserving tone, humor, and deeper meaning—especially in creative or marketing content.
In this content, translation should often give way to transcreation. This is when a message from one language is adapted to another with a focus on being faithful and culturally relevant to the original message without being a word for word translation.
Context Matters—And AI Often Misses It
AI translations work at the sentence or phrase level, often without fully understanding the broader context. This can result in awkward phrasing or incorrect terminology.
For instance, the word “bank” might refer to a financial institution or the side of a river—without contextual awareness, an AI system may choose the wrong meaning. Accurate translations always take into account the entirety of the text and its relevance to the wider context of how it’ll be read.
Human post-editors bring the ability to interpret the full context of your document. They ensure consistency in terminology, clarify ambiguous terms, and adjust phrasing to better suit your audience and the purpose of the content.
Grammatical and Stylistic Errors
Even the most advanced AI systems can generate translations with awkward syntax, incorrect word order, or inconsistent verb tenses. These may be subtle, but they can make your text sound unnatural or unprofessional.
Post-editors refine sentence structure, ensure grammatical accuracy, and align your text with the stylistic expectations of the target language. This is particularly important in formal documents like legal contracts, technical manuals, or academic papers, where precision is non-negotiable.
Failure to get it right in these situations can have devastating consequences to your business beyond the bottom line, they can create legal accountability. Imagine your liability if a poorly translated health and safety procedure document results in the injury of an employee.
Subject Matter Expertise
AI tools typically use general language models that lack industry-specific knowledge. In specialized fields such as medicine, law, engineering, or finance, even minor terminology errors can lead to serious misunderstandings or compliance issues.
Human post-editors with subject matter expertise can identify and correct these inaccuracies. They ensure that your terminology aligns with industry standards and that your translation reflects the intended meaning of the source text—something AI still can’t do reliably on its own.
Brand Voice and Emotional Impact
When translating marketing copy, social media posts, or customer-facing content, maintaining your brand’s tone of voice is essential.
AI may produce grammatically correct text, but it often lacks emotional nuance, persuasive power, or brand consistency. Once again, transcreation tends to be the best route forward, and this requires human intervention.
Post-editors adapt the translation to fit your brand’s personality and voice, while also ensuring that cultural sensitivities are respected. This is vital in global marketing, where miscommunication or cultural faux pas can have devastating effects on your brand’s reputation.
Getting AI to Work Properly for You
AI is a great tool to help you reach your global business goals. As we’ve seen though, it can’t be just left to its own devices. It almost always needs a level of human post-editing to make sure it’s culturally relevant, your brand is represented accurately, it’s legal and compliant, and it talks in a manner that fits your industry.
The best way to make sure this works is by partnering with a good LSP with experience in your industry and aligns with how your business likes to work. They’ll be able to determine just the right amount of AI help to fit your budget and requirements, so the only intelligence you need to focus on is understanding that of your customers.
Are you looking for guidance on your translation strategy? If so, we’d love to talk to you. Consultations are free and there’s no obligation.
You’re in safe hands with us as we’re ISO 17100 and ISO 9001 compliant, have over twenty years of professional translation experience, and have earned the trust of organizations around the world.
