Australian roboticist, author, and entrepreneur, Rodney Brooks, once commented:

Artificial intelligence is a tool, not a threat.

And I couldn't agree more. I was amazed when I got to know that Google introduced a ground-breaking technology of a live speech translating feature for Google Meet at its I/O 2025 developer conference.

All thanks to Google DeepMind’s powerful AI language model, which will facilitate seamless communication across language barriers during virtual meetings by translating spoken words into the listener’s preferred language, preserving the original speaker’s tone, emotion, and voice texture.

Key Features and Function

The new translation technology allows participants in meetings to translate spoken language in real time and both ways. The authenticity of the speaker's original voice will be maintained through voice synthesis technology that replicates the speaker's vocal characteristics.

The system begins translating before a sentence is fully spoken. However, because of the AI's predictive processing, early testing has shown occasional misinterpretations, especially at the start of phrases.

Demonstrating the feature, CEO Sundar Pichai emphasized its potential to bridge language barriers:

This is a major step toward making communication truly universal. By preserving the speaker's voice and tone, we're not just translating words—we're conveying meaning and emotion.

Availability of Languages

Currently, the feature supports English and Spanish, with plans to expand to Italian, German, and Portuguese in the coming weeks. Initially, access is restricted to users who have purchased Google's AI Pro or AI Ultra plans, the latter of which costs $249.99 a month.

Google has also emphasized user privacy, stating that it does not store meeting data or use it to train its AI models.

A reviewer from The Wall Street Journal noted:

The AI-generated voice was startlingly similar to my own and capable of conveying emotional intonation.

See, How It Works

Future Developments

This development aligns with Google's broader vision of integrating AI into everyday tools to enhance user experience. Pichai highlighted this direction:

The power of Gemini—multimodality, long context, and agents—brings us closer to our ultimate goal: making AI helpful for everyone.

Looking ahead, I am hopeful that the language barrier won't cause any hindrance in communication in the future, rather it will help us to express ourselves without any inhibitions and will let us create more meaningful and inclusive conversations across various languages.

We live in a country where we are fighting over languages every day, so this initiative of Google will be a significant step toward bridging linguistic divides.

#GoogleMeet #AI #Translation #TechInnovation #VirtualMeetings