Introduction

The world of Bible translation is on the brink of a paradigm shift. For decades, the process has been centralized, controlled by overseas agencies and individual missionaries. But a new model is emerging—one that’s decentralized, community-driven, and powered by AI.

The Shift Towards Decentralization

This shift towards “permissionless translation at the edge” is not just a possibility; it’s already happening. While many in the Bible translation community are debating how to introduce AI tools, the reality is that people in communities large and small are already running AI models locally on their machines.

Challenges and Opportunities

The traditional paradigm values careful oversight and quality control. It’s understandable, then, that the initial response to AI in translation is often to hit the pause button and implement controls. But this approach risks missing the opportunity that’s unfolding before us.

AI isn’t just a tool to be integrated into existing processes. It’s a catalyst for a fundamental reimagining of how translation happens. It empowers local communities to take ownership of translation, allows for rapid iteration and feedback, and enables translations that are more natural and culturally nuanced.

Enhancing Human Translators

Because AI cannot translate into a language a human has never translated before, the new paradigm doesn’t replace initial human translators—it enhances their capabilities. It turns translation quality into a social process, leveraging community consensus for accuracy. It embraces cultural nuances and local idioms in ways that remote oversight never could.

The Role of Data

The key to unlocking this potential? Data. (See Data is the bottleneck for more on this.) By giving communities tools to document their languages, we provide them with the raw material that AI needs to work. This could lead to rapid transformations in oral-only communities and increased demand for written scriptures.

Embracing the Shift

So, what can we do to embrace this shift?

1. Recognize that AI in translation isn’t coming—it’s here. We need to engage with it now.
2. Invest in tools that empower local communities to document their languages and drive their own translation processes.
3. Shift our focus from control to empowerment. How can we equip communities rather than oversee them?
4. Prepare for a multi-modal future where text, audio, and visual translations coexist and complement each other.

Conclusion

The future of Bible translation is permissionless, decentralized, and AI-enhanced. It’s a future where every community has the tools to engage with Scripture in their heart language. The question isn’t whether this shift will happen, but how quickly we’ll adapt to it. The revolution in Bible translation is here—are we ready to embrace it?

Last week I presented at the Generating Wisdom Conference at the Museum of the Bible in Washington, D.C. on the topic of “Human Centric AI” and the paradigm shift happening in Bible translation.

An online conference attendee later emailed and summarized the approach described in some of my points with the phrase “Permissionless Translation at the Edge.” I thought this was an excellent summary of the approach, so I’m using it as the title of this post (thanks Greg Outlaw!).