Alibaba releases a new translation-focused AI model for international e-commerce, trade and daily life
Alibaba’s international commerce business, Alibaba International Digital Commerce (AIDC) Group, has launched a new large-language model specifically focused on translations (via S.C.M.P).
The model – Macro MT – is expected to help in cross-border e-commerce and trade efforts by removing language barriers and integrating with other business scenarios and daily communications.
The news comes not long after AIDC VP Zhang Kaifu committed to deploying generative AI to help with translation, content creation and more (via Reuters).
Alibaba launches AI model for translation
“Macro MT will seamlessly integrate into Alibaba International’s overarching business strategies, strengthening the operational backbone of our diverse cross-border e-commerce platforms such as AliExpress, Lazada, Trendyol and more,” Zhang confirmed.
The model offers integration into product listing management, customer service, and search systems, and promises translations of titles, descriptions, image captions, and keywords.
At launch, 15 languages are supported, including Chinese, English, French, German, Italian, Japanese and Korean. However, Alibaba is preparing to add more languages and improve translation quality in the future.
In addition to the integration within Alibaba’s platforms, AIDC aims to make Macro MT available globally, extending its benefits to a broader range of merchants and individual and business users beyond e-commerce. Macro MT aims to address the pitfalls of existing translation tools.
The decision to build such a model came after the company noticed that “existing translation tools fall short in navigating the complexities of culturally nuanced and idiom-laden expressions.”
Zhang added that the model has already surpassed a number of leading translation models, as evidenced by its performance on the Flores benchmark, which focuses on translating to and from English and under-resourced languages that typically receive less support.