Airbnb adds upgraded interpreter
Airbnb has announced an updated Translation Engine which is intended to make life easier for hosts and guests in over 60 languages.
The new software, the company announced this week, removes the need for click-to-translate buttons, leveraging millions of Airbnb data points to automatically translate listing descriptions.
The company indicates that Translation Engine was expanded this summer to include messaging which manages a high volume of messages across the platform each day — more than 1.3 billion in the 12 months leading to June 30, 2022, which roughly translates to over 3.5 million a day, and over 40 every second.
Messages are now automatically translated in the user’s preferred language, making it even easier for hosts and guests to interact and ask questions, Airbnb said.
It was noted that since the implementation of this technology, the top five most used languages in the guest to host message translation tool are English to Spanish, English to Norwegian, English to French and English to German.
Airbnb says it has also added reviews to the Translation Engine, explaining, “Now guests can easily scroll automatically translated reviews in their preferred language, without having to click on each individual one, not only saving time but also minimising misinterpretations.”
The new features will handle a volume of around 550 million reviews across the entirety of the platform to date, for hosts and guests across more than 100,000 cities and more than 220 countries and regions.
Airbnb noted, “With the opening of international borders, the translation tool is a key tool to enable more hosts to welcome foreign guests without facing language barriers.”
The platform was released during the first half of 2022. The United States, Canada, Germany, the United Kingdom and France were the top five non-Spanish-speaking countries of origin of guests.