September 13, 2022

Maori translation machine Straker aim

Adam Gifford Posted On September 13, 2022

Maori-owned tech company Straker Translations has partnered with Microsoft to develop an automated translation platform to support use of te reo Māori in print and online media.

Chief executive Grant Straker says he raised the issue with Microsoft President, Brad Smith, during Prime Minister Jacinda Ardern’s recent trade delegation to the US.

Microsoft is providing putea and technical support to combine Straker Translations’ existing translation tools with the Microsoft Translator platform and AI technology.

The aim is to enable news media to translate whole articles into te reo Māori at scale.

Mr Straker says he’s like to enable schools to participate in the process, with articles for translation being made available via Microsoft Teams.

He says of the 140 languages Straker translates, Māori and Pacific translations are among the most expensive, because of the scarcity of skilled translators.