Cisco continues to overhaul Webex, now with real-time language transcription
Having announced more than 50 planned innovations at its WebexOne event in December, Cisco’s Webex is rolling out another of those capabilities today: real-time language translation. The feature will be available in Webex as a preview starting this month, with general availability in May.
Users of the platform will soon be able to have their in-meeting speech translated in real time from an expanded library of over 100 languages, including Maori, Zulu and Armenian. The plethora of new languages underlines Cisco’s aim to “power an inclusive future for all.” The feature was initially unveiled with only nine perspective languages in the works.
Jeetu Patel, senior vice president and general manager of security and applications, said Cisco has made “north of a billion dollars” worth of investments in AI, including the acquisition of Voicea in 2019, a company specializing in meeting transcription, voice search, and meeting action items. Without providing specifics, Patel claimed that accuracy rates with real-time transcription are “starting to get exciting.”