The software developed by this Spanish company is able to translate sentences dictated by a user in milliseconds. The initial version of the program translates from English to Spanish and viceverse, but the company expects to soon broaden to new languages.

One of the dreams of humanity has always been to break language communication barriers through the use of technology. But translating correctly from one language to another has been, until today, an unconquered challenge that no company or scientist had been able to overcome. However, Néstor Jacob, a businessman from Málaga and founder of Thinket, claims to have designed an algorithm that can accomplish this task in real-time, with an efficiency of almost 100%, while people converse.

Based on a neural network, the translator has the capacity to learn thanks to an artificial intelligence module programmed specifically to analyze the grammar and semantics of texts. This module allows the system to learn from experience, and be capable with time of translating words in relation to their context, organizing words in the correct order. Voice Project is able to self-learn new languages and expressions, and can even complete unfinished words resulting, for example, from interference during a telephone conversation. It could be said that this novel translator does not translate literally, but rather translates “ideas”, something which could be of great use in such diverse fields as tele-medicine or tourism.

The initial version of this software translates in milliseconds from Spanish to English and vice versa, although its designer points out that it can already speak broken Chinese and Russian. The company is currently looking for partners in order to broaden the horizons of “Voice Project” to these languages and other new ones.

While it could be adapted to many different communication platforms (Skype, PDA…) the company’s current business model is based on mobile telephony.

Telefónica is already interested in the product, as are various large firms from Silicon Valley, with which Thinket has begun discussions. The company now has a team working in the US.