Orange Inc., the startup that had been touting its revolutionary use of AI to translate over 500 manga into English per month, has reneged on its tall claims after revealing on Sep 3, 2024, that only “10%” of the titles on its newly launched digital manga store, emaqi, will actually be AI-translated.
The remaining work will be handled by an in-house team of approximately 20 human translators, raising questions about the company’s earlier claims and the role of AI in manga translation.
The announcement comes at a time when efforts to significantly expand Japan’s manga exports are in full swing, with the utilization of AI to speed up the translation process being a key component.
Orange Inc. was at the forefront of this initiative, with backing from major players like Shogakukan, Shueisha and the Japan Innovation Corporation (JIC).
The goal was ambitious: to increase translation speed by up to ten times, allowing for a massive expansion in the number of manga titles available to global audiences, and ultimately promoting the growth of Japan’s content industry.
The company claimed that AI could potentially translate a full volume in just a few days, which would significantly reduce the time and cost associated with human translation.
This would allow for an estimated 500 manga volumes to be translated from Japanese to English each month—five times the current industry output.
However, emaqi’s launch has been anything but smooth. Met with skepticism and criticism from manga fans & translators alike, the platform struggled to gain acceptance.
Critics argued that relying on AI would compromise the artistic integrity of the original works, leading to a loss of nuance and cultural context that human translators could better preserve.
The decision to limit AI translation to just 10% of emaqi’s content appears to be a direct response to these concerns.
Orange Inc. has emphasized that AI will be used primarily to support its human translators, rather than replace them.
According to the company, this approach aims to strike a balance between efficiency and quality, ensuring that the authenticity of the original works is maintained while also speeding up the translation process.
Another significant change in how emaqi works is related to AI curated lists and recommendations.
In their press release which came out after raising a significant investment from a consortium of ten prominent companies, including Shogakukan and several venture capital firms, amounting to 2.92 billion yen, Orange claimed that emaqi will “feature recommendations suggested by AI technology and manga influencers to offer new and fun experiences to all manga fans in the US.”
However, in the latest press release, the company claims that “emaqi will continue to expand its features, including personalized recommendations and curation by manga fans, ensuring that users discover new and captivating manga tailored to their individual tastes.“
While the cutting down of AI translation is a good news for the community, it does raise questions on the about its initial marketing claims.
Despite the setback, Orange Inc. will continue to push forward with its broader mission.
This funding they received is being used to further develop Orange’s localization platform, with the aim of increasing the number of manga exported from Japan by a factor of three within the next five years.
Shoko Ugaki, CEO of Orange Inc., had previously highlighted the company’s commitment to delivering diverse and unique manga to readers every day.
Source: Orange Inc Official Website via MangaAlerts