Abstracts
Fernando Prieto Ramos
Translator competence and training in the age of artificial intelligence
The rapid integration of machine translation (MT) and artificial intelligence (AI) more broadly into translation workflows has produced a landscape of increasingly "augmented translation", triggering new challenges and questions about the role of human translators. We will present the findings of research on the patterns of human-machine interaction in institutional translation, and the perceptions of its impact in the field, and will discuss the implications for specialist translator competence requirements and training.
Titela Vîlceanu
Training for a Profession That Does Not Yet Exist: Universities and the Future of Translation
It is widely acknowledged that the language professions are undergoing a profound transformation. Advances in Artificial Intelligence, the rapid development of language technologies, as well as the platformisation of multilingual services are impacting how translation is produced, distributed and valued. In this evolving landscape, universities play a pivotal role: translator training programmes are no longer preparing students for a stable profession, but for one that is continuously reshaped. In this context, I argue that equipping students for such a future requires, perhaps, more than ever, research-based translator training. Universities are not only sites of professional preparation but also laboratories in which new models of multilingual communication, human - AI collaboration and language mediation are conceptualised and critically examined. As a result, research in Translation Studies becomes a crucial driver in the ongoing reconfiguration of the language professions.
Three interrelated dimensions deserve particular attention. First, the competence profile of language professionals is expanding to include technological literacy, data awareness, research competence, and a critical understanding of language technologies. Second, research plays a key role in investigating emerging practices such as AI-assisted translation, localisation workflows, multimodal communication and the socio-economic dynamics of language work. Increasingly, doctoral projects function as bridges between theory and professional practice, generating knowledge that informs both academic curricula and industry innovation. Third, the development of research-informed training environments - especially within Master's and doctoral programmes - creates spaces in which students engage directly with the evolving practices, tools and epistemologies of the field.
Rather than training translators for a predefined professional role, universities are increasingly called upon to educate reflective language professionals and researchers capable of navigating complex multilingual ecosystems. By strengthening the links between translator training, research and professional practice, higher education institutions can contribute actively to reconstructing the knowledge base, practices and identities of the language professions in a rapidly changing technological landscape.
Daniela Badea
European Commission DGT's AI-based Multilingual Services
In recent years, the European Commission's Directorate-General for Translation has evolved into a provider of AI-based multilingual services, including eTranslation, eSummary, eReply, eBriefing, eReporting, Anonymisation, and Speech-to-Text. These tools are available at no cost to EU institutions and eligible users across Member States and Digital Europe countries, such as academia, public administrations, SMEs, and NGOs. This presentation aims to introduce these resources and to offer guidance on how to start using them.
John Kirby
Coming to terms with AI – How the European Commission uses AI and other new technologies to carry out terminology work
The Translation DG of the European Commission, one of the largest translation services in the world, sees terminology as a cornerstone of the translation process. It is also in the vanguard of exploration into AI and its use in translation and documentation processes. So how do these worlds come together? How does the Translation DG harness AI and other new technologies to improve its terminology processes? Tune in to find out.
Mădălina Marincu
Beyond Translation: How Linguistic Expertise Leads to AI
In this session, Mădălina Marincu speaks about her trajectory from translator and terminologist to prompt engineer at the European Commission, unpacking what linguistic expertise really means in an AI-driven world. What skills can be transferred? What did she have to learn from scratch? And what does a job that didn't exist a decade ago actually look like day to day? An honest, practical and forward-looking portrait of a profession still finding its shape and why language specialists are uniquely positioned to define it.