With the continuous growth of global content consumption, the demand for non-English content is rapidly increasing, even surpassing that for English films and shows. In this context, IMAX has begun to leverage artificial intelligence technology to accelerate the localization process of its original content, aiming to attract more viewers.
According to a report by PwC, the global entertainment and media industry reached a scale of $2.8 trillion in 2023, and it is expected to grow to $3.4 trillion over the next five years at an average annual growth rate of nearly 4%. Notably, the popularity of non-English language content is rapidly rising even in English-speaking markets such as the United States, the United Kingdom, Australia, and Canada. For instance, on Netflix, the audience for non-English content in the UK has increased by 90% over the past three years.
To better adapt to this trend, IMAX announced on Monday a partnership with Dubai-based startup Camb.ai, utilizing its AI voice model to translate IMAX's original content, including documentaries. Camb.ai has successfully applied its AI voice-over and translation technology in various sports events, including the Australian Open, the Eurovision Song Contest, and the NFL.
Camb.ai's technology employs a "three-tier" architecture, where the base layer consists of its Boli and Mars models, the infrastructure layer hosts these AI models, and the DubStudio platform provides the final service. Unlike other AI models, Boli can preserve nuances in speech, while the Mars model converts the translated text into speech in the target language, retaining background sound effects.
According to Akshat Prakash, co-founder and CTO of Camb.ai, this technology allows for real-time translation in up to 10 languages with a delay of 20 to 30 seconds, making it suitable for live broadcasts. IMAX plans to roll out AI translation in phases, prioritizing high-resource languages. The application of this technology is expected to help IMAX save on translation costs, although specific details have not been disclosed.
Currently, Camb.ai has 50 employees and completed a $4 million seed funding round in February this year, preparing for a larger fundraising effort to further expand its team and market presence.
Key Points:
🌍 Demand for non-English content is soaring, and IMAX is driving localization through AI technology.
🤝 IMAX partners with Camb.ai to enhance viewer experience with AI translation.
💰 Camb.ai has secured funding and plans to expand its team and technology applications.
