Google Voice Translation: Latest Google X 'Moon Shot' Program Can Already Translate 24 Languages

Google Inc. (NASDAQ:GOOG) co-founder Larry Page isn’t content with his company owning the world’s most-popular search engine, mobile operating system and most-recognizable eyeglasses. Page wants Google to revolutionize the world of technology.

That’s why in 2010 he started Google X, a program designed to make sci-fi dreams and "moon shots" a reality. Previous projects have included a balloon-based Wi-Fi system, a self-driving car and an artificial brain. Even Google Glass was developed in the Google X lab dedicated to Google moon shot projects.

Now, Google Translate has begun a moon shot project to

develop a voice-enabled translation app that could someday eliminate language barriers, and an early version can already translate 24 different languages.

The Google voice translator is slow and clunky, Franz Josef Och, the head of Google Translate, told Der Spiegel. But Och believes the technology will quickly become a viable option over the next few years. The goal is to make a voice translation application that can take any conversation and quickly and seamlessly return a translation. For example, an English-speaking tourist in China could speak into the app, “take me to the pharmacy," and the app would then speak the sentence back in perfect Chinese.

source: http://www.ibtimes.com/google-voice-translation-latest-google-x-moon-shot-program-can-already-translate-24-languages