Language, Translation and Identity in the AI Era

Overview:

This theory-only webinar examines how AI is reshaping language, translation, and identity in a hyper connected world. You will explore how AI translation can both connect and flatten cultures, how language models encode values and biases, and what “identity” means when machines mediate more of our words. Designed for students, the session blends linguistics, ethics, and communication theory to reveal hidden stakes in everyday AI language use.

Why you should Attend:

In the AI era, the words you use may be written, translated, or filtered by machines you don’t understand. If you don’t learn how AI shapes language and identity, you risk losing your voice, misreading others, and accepting hidden biases as truth. This session gives you the conceptual tools to stay in control of your language and your cultural identity

Areas Covered in the Session:

• What is machine translation and how it differs from human translation
• How neural machine translation works (conceptual overview)
• Benefits of AI translation: speed, access, and cross-border communication
• Limits and errors: literalness, context loss, and cultural nuance
• Language as a carrier of culture, history, and identity
• How AI can flatten or distort cultural identity in translation
• Bias in language models: whose norms become “default”? 
• Power and control: who decides what counts as a “good” translation? 
• Human translator identity in the age of AI: changing roles and status
• Ethical issues: transparency, accountability, and disclosure of AI use
• Impact on minority and indigenous languages (preservation vs. erosion).
• AI, social media, and the spread of globalized language styles
• What students should know to use AI language tools responsibly

Who Will Benefit:

• All