The promise and the pitfall of artificial intelligence
Artificial intelligence has reshaped modern business. From auditing and translation to logistics and customer service, AI enables companies to analyse large volumes of data quickly and at a lower cost.
The promise is compelling: improved productivity, lower spend and apparent objectivity.
Yet the same characteristics that make AI attractive can also make it dangerous.
Algorithms execute patterns without understanding them. They process information without reflection or moral awareness.
When an error occurs, AI can spread it instantly and across entire systems.
The recent Deloitte audit incident in Australia, where artificial intelligence generated errors in an official report, has reignited debate about the limits of automation.
Once viewed as a guarantee of accuracy, AI is revealing its vulnerabilities.
When systems designed to improve efficiency introduce costly mistakes, it becomes clear that too much reliance on technology creates risk.
This case is more than an isolated corporate blunder. It is a warning that AI, for all its sophistication, still lacks one crucial quality: human judgement.
When AI goes wrong
Deloitte’s refund to the Australian government following an AI-assisted report exposed the growing problem of automation without accountability.
The system generated sections that contained factual inaccuracies which slipped through initial reviews.
The mistake demonstrated how easily AI outputs can be mistaken for accuracy.
Machines produce convincing language, yet they can be confidently wrong.
Once such material reaches official or public channels, the reputational and financial consequences can be serious.
People can question assumptions, recognise tone and understand cultural implications, abilities that AI does not possess.
In fields such as auditing, journalism and translation, human review ensures that data is meaningful, not merely correct on the surface.
When oversight is neglected, errors go unnoticed and accountability weakens. Machines may execute flawlessly, but only humans can decide whether what they produce makes sense.
Data bias and context blindness
AI learns from existing data. If that data is biased, incomplete, or culturally narrow, the system will reproduce those limitations. This can distort hiring decisions, financial analyses and even translations.
Unlike humans, AI cannot reliably detect irony, humour, or regional variation. It cannot sense when something is inappropriate or inaccurate.
For language work in particular, cultural understanding shapes outcomes far beyond word choice.
Loss of brand authenticity and voice
As companies increase their use of AI-generated communication, the risk of losing brand identity rises. Automated messages and marketing copy can begin to sound formulaic, stripping away the individuality that connects businesses with their audiences.
Over time, this can make brands appear impersonal and indistinguishable from their competitors.
Authenticity is central to trust. When a company’s tone becomes mechanical or overly generic, customers may perceive it as detached or insincere.
Maintaining a distinctive human voice is vital for credibility, loyalty and long-term brand strength.
Compliance and legal exposure.
AI systems can inadvertently generate material that breaches copyright, data protection, or advertising regulations.
Without human verification, these mistakes may go unnoticed until they create legal or financial consequences.
Automated summaries or reports may also misrepresent facts, leading to potential liability.
Businesses must therefore ensure that every AI output is reviewed for accuracy and compliance.
Human oversight protects against the risk of unverified claims, unauthorised use of content and potential violations of consumer protection standards.
Compromised credibility, damaged reputation
Overreliance on AI can quickly undermine public trust. Once customers or partners discover that information has been produced or approved without sufficient human review, they may question the organisation’s reliability.
In industries where precision and ethical standards are critical (such as finance, law, or translation), reputational damage can be lasting.
Recovering from credibility loss often requires more time and resources than the initial automation was meant to save.
Transparency, human oversight and quality assurance are therefore essential to preserve professional integrity.
The illusion of efficiency
AI is often promoted as a way to save time and reduce costs.
Yet when automation introduces errors, the time spent locating and correcting them can outweigh the initial benefit.
Over time, professionals may lose critical skills as they depend too heavily on technology.
True efficiency requires balance. AI should handle repetitive tasks, while humans manage judgement, interpretationand final approval.
When that balance is lost, efficiency becomes an illusion.
Towards a balanced approach
Businesses should not reject AI, but they should integrate it responsibly.
Establish human-in-the-loop processes that ensure every AI-generated output is reviewed by qualified professionals.
Build regular audits, clear data provenance and ethical guidelines into any deployment.
Define thresholds for automatic rejection, escalation and human sign-off.
Equip teams to understand both the potential and the limitations of AI.
Automation should enhance human ability, not replace it.
The most successful organisations will combine machine precision with human reasoning and domain expertise.
Conclusion: technology needs human wisdom
The Deloitte case is a timely reminder that automation cannot replace accountability.
Artificial intelligence processes information, but it does not think nor does it take responsibility for its errors.
Technology delivers real value only when paired with human insight.
Businesses that embrace AI without proper supervision risk damaging their credibility, while those that maintain human oversight safeguard both quality and trust.
At BeTranslated, technology plays a supportive rather than dominant role.
AI tools assist the translation process by improving consistency and efficiency, but the final work always reflects the expertise of professional linguists.
Each project benefits from human insight, cultural understanding and rigorous review, which ensures that every text reads naturally and accurately.
By combining technological innovation with human judgement, BeTranslated maintains the balance that automation alone cannot achieve.
Contact BeTranslated
Need reliable translation for complex, regulated, or culturally sensitive content? Learn how a human-led, technology-assisted workflow protects quality and brand trust.
Trademarks are significant intangible assets in today’s culture.
A well-known mark is a substantial source of income for a company.
In addition, a brand serves as a visual representation of the company and its products.
As a result of the intense market rivalry, these marks play a crucial role in concentrating products on the market.
To be successful in market competitions, all companies have a similar value system.
As a result, translating marks for different regions is highly significant and can have a substantial impact on a business.
If you want to expand your business abroad, here are the ways in which translating brand names can benefit your organisation:
Translations can take you to a global market
A product’s brand name is critical. However, having a solid name alone isn’t sufficient. It’s vital to have an accurate and professional translation.
Similarly, if you have invented a new product, you may wish to look into securing a patent for your innovation, as this patent will provide you with more protection, ensuring your company is secure for up to 20 years.
As a result of entering the World Trade Organization, China has seen an influx of international goods.
Nevertheless, a well-translated mark is unquestionably an effective marketing tool and symbol for a company.
It may also assist a business, allowing it to reach a broader global audience, and it can take you to a worldwide market.
Translations must conform to local customs
The target audience’s customs should be followed while translating brand names.
Chinese brand names, for example, are often composed of two or three phrases, aligned with Chinese tradition.
Traditional Chinese names and names of places are written and are comprised of two or three words at most.
This approach should be followed when localising brand names from English into Chinese.
Once you join the Chinese market, the vast majority of your client base will be from China itself.
However, because these names come from many cultural backgrounds, they must first be translated into Chinese.
They may gain market share and the trust of Chinese consumers if they have a competent translator on their side.
As a result of cultural differences, individuals have various ways of thinking, temperaments, and interests when it comes to art and design.
Therefore, the specific cultures of the target nations should be reflected in the translation.
Translations must comply with local laws
Translations of brand names must adhere to local rules and regulations, particularly intellectual property laws.
This is because legislation varies from country to country, so you must be extra careful while translating.
For example, the word ‘citizen’ was rendered as ‘希奇准’ throughout the city. These three Chinese characters accurately and concisely define the product.
However, because of Hong Kong’s legal requirements, the brand name was rejected during the registration process. As a result, ‘Citizen’ was later retranslated as ‘西铁城.’
Translations protect intellectual property
In order to differentiate one company’s products or services from those of another equivalent business on the market, brand names are used.
Intellectual property rights protect these names.
A name may be registered for national or regional legal protection at the appropriate office by submitting an application for registration and paying the necessary fees.
However, translating intellectual property isn’t easy. Since it involves so many nuances and linguistic subtleties, it requires an expert’s touch.
As there is a lot of complexity and subtleties involved in translating intellectual property, it’s best left to those with extensive experience.
Translations bring huge profit
A well-translated brand name is unquestionably an effective marketing tool for a company. It may also assist a business in reaching a broader global market.
A solid brand seems to play a crucial role in conveying meanings, explaining the benefits of a product, and differentiating it from competitors.
A good name may save a company a lot of money, while simultaneously generating enormous revenues.
As a result, businesses make no compromises when exploring the commercial attractiveness of brand names from every angle.
Conclusion
To summarise, brand names are critical to the sale of goods.
Cultural and religious differences may have a significant role in the translation, so it would help if you prioritised these aspects while working on it.
With the rapid growth of social media, online platforms and e-commerce sites, it has never been as vital as it is now to ensure your message and content is shared widely.
For example, the number of videos posted on a network like Facebook has exploded to the point that an estimated 100 million hours of video are consumed by internet users each day.
Companies that turn to these communication channels have seen their turnover skyrocket and their international customers grow in unexpected numbers. That’s where video subtitling comes in.
What can video subtitling offer your organisation?
Everyone agrees, your company video presentation was a roaring success, yet there have been no clicks.
Why could that be? Well, it’s worth bearing in mind that over 8 out of 10 videos online are watched with the sound off.
And this applies across social networks and broadcasting mediums.
Ads, trailers, excerpts of speeches and TV programmes are usually watched with the sound off, pushing more and more organisations to have their audiovisual content subtitled by an audiovisual translation agency.
The pros of English subtitles
With subtitles in English, you will be able to reach out to a new audience that, so far, has not been able to access your audiovisual content.
For example, once subtitled in English your video will be accessible to people who are deaf or hard of hearing, that’s 11 million people in the UK alone.
This method, known as closed captioning, is part of the inclusive communication philosophy that arrived with the early 21st century and allows a larger number of people to access information.
English subtitles on your video will broaden your field of activity and boost your message’s circulation both within your business, through meetings and presentations, and externally to social media users or as part of a client-canvassing strategy.
A recent study by Facebook showed that a subtitled video or short film received 10% more likes while its viewing time increased by 12% and shares by a massive 26%! Tempting, isn’t it?
Subtitling in other European languages – a door to more marketplaces
To go even further, and really connect with a huge international audience, many organisations make a habit of subtitling their video content such as their ads, marketing videos, company presentations, official communications and training videos.
Sharing communications of this type in multiple languages on their website or e-commerce platform is one of the best development strategies that internationally-minded companies can put in place.
Free of language restrictions, your company video can travel wide, from Brazil to France, passing through Japan and Spain en route.
It is vital to put your trust in specialist audiovisual translators who know the rights and wrongs of subtitling like the back of their hand, whether that’s for films, short videos or even documentaries and educational films. Otherwise, the proof will be in the video.
These linguists are not only natives of the relevant countries, and so understand the linguistic uses and customs perfectly, but they alone will know how to reconvey your message in line with the many rules of professional subtitling, such as character limits, spotting and managing different types of files and colour codes in closed captions.
Trust us with your video content, and we would be delighted to get back to you with a prompt quote taking into account the film’s duration and your personal requirements.
As the digital age continues to evolve and explode with new and useful tools, the allure of using AI for content creation and translation is undeniable.
At BeTranslated, we specialise in humanization, offering nuanced understanding, cultural sensitivity, and emotional intelligence that AI cannot replicate.
Our team ensures your message is not only accurate but culturally resonant, with a commitment to confidentiality and human responsibility at the core of our services.
While AI can streamline processes, the expertise and personal care of our professionals guarantee your content accurately reflects your brand’s essence.
Choose BeTranslated for a blend of technology and human expertise, where your message’s integrity and confidentiality are our top priority.
Why is that you ask? Well, because we have more in common than you think.
Translation agencies and communication agencies have the same aim: to simplify information exchange between a company and its target audience to initiate a business relationship.
Translation agencies address businesses that are looking to reach an international audience, while communication agencies speak to all types of organisations but especially those with international aspirations.
As with any professional translation service, qualified translators guarantee a quality product.
Although translation software has come a long way, it still fails to produce nuanced texts which take context into consideration.
And, while your bilingual employee might have no problems communicating with international business partners in their native language, without experience and training they will struggle to produce accurate translations that are fit for service.
Not to mention, it will take them much longer than a professional.
Relying on these subpar measures will lead to translations containing errors, leaving your customers with a negative impression of your company.
Bad translations tell people that you are unprofessional and may lead them to question your company’s abilities in other areas.
This could result in loss of business and, in the worst cases of mistranslation, legal action being taken against you.
The value of spending money on a professional translation service
Now that we’ve touched upon the issue of poor-quality amateur translation, let’s take a look at how and why professional translators are able to produce such high standards of work.
Like experts in most fields, it comes down to training and experience.
Professional translators, like those working for BeTranslated, have gone through many years of education in order to become experts in translation, as well as working hard to be skillful linguists in their language combinations.
In addition to this, professional translators usually have experience and training in their specialisms. For example, financial translators may have studied economics or travel and tourism translators may have worked in the travel industry.
This education is continuous throughout their career; translators must stay on top of changes in both the translation industry and the industry of the specialism, as well as continually working on their linguistic skills.
This effort leads to highly skilled professionals whose work cannot be compared to that of amateurs or machines.
It’s also worth noting that when you hire translators through an agency such as BeTranslated, you can rest assured that all their translators are of a certain standard and that they exclusively translate into their native language.
Investing in translation means investing in your business success
If your company’s motto has been “let’s try to do it ourselves instead of hiring a professional” in relation to translation, we hope that the information provided in this article is making you question your stance. Your attempts to save money by skimping on translation could prove costly in the long run.
Employing multilingual people or staff with a knowledge of foreign languages is crucial for companies that are working at an international level.
Having a good knowledge of English, for example, is a significant advantage in the workplace as in many locations around the globe English is considered a lingua franca when working with overseas clients.
With that said, the ability to master additional languages could be just the thing that gives your business the competitive edge.
This is particularly important when doing business in regions where knowledge of English is not a given.
Consider hiring staff that are proficient in languages that are relevant to your sector, whether that’s Spanish, French, Chinese, Korean or any other language.
The benefits of speaking your clients’ native language
Your client will view your dedication to having invested the time to learn their language as a long-term commitment.
Furthermore, this will reward you with long-standing relationships and loyalty from your customers. It’s also worth noting that having an understanding of the language used in your new market will enable you to acquire far better insights into the local character, customs, and beliefs.
Multilingual employees help foster strong relationships with clients
Employing multilingual people can bring great benefits to your company. These employees will enable your business to seamlessly connect with foreign customers and other local organisations.
The ability to provide your services in multiple languages gives clients a strong impression of your company; it will build greater trust and appreciation for your services, resulting in strong relationships with your clients.
These relationships can be translated into significant profits, meaning hiring multilingual employees is a sensible financial decision.
What if your team isn’t multilingual?
Not all companies have the luxury of employing multilingual people, which can put them at a disadvantage. But never fear!
By hiring a professional translation service, your company can gain many of the benefits of multilingual employees, and more besides.
Translators can be used for a wide variety of communicative tasks, from informal communications between companies to legal contracts and marketing campaigns.
Contracting professional translators guarantees that any content you produce in the target language is of the highest quality.
BeTranslated’s vast network of expert translators could be just the thing your company needs to facilitate its international expansion.
Get in touch today for more information or a free, no-obligation quote.
