On Sunday, June 8th, about 20 translators, interpreters, and language enthusiasts gathered in Kobe to discuss the recent IJET-33 (held May 9–11, 2025, in Fukuoka). Those who were unable to attend the conference were able to ask questions, and the vibrant discussion ranged from IR interpretation to period-specific prose in the TV show SHOGUN to navigating translation in the age of AI. Some suggestions were raised on how JAT can better advocate for its members and the industry as a whole, and attendees were treated to a brief recap of Susan Jones’s presentation on AI by the presenter herself.
After the two-hour discussion (which felt too short after 40 minutes of self-introductions), most of the group moved to the Konshinkai at a local craft beer taproom for a more relaxed conversation. Even after the nomi-hodai finished, there were still more topics to be covered, and the remaining members split into coffee and beer groups. The beer group was treated to an interesting recap of the history of AI from a former MIT computer engineering PhD, which contextualized the current moment in the language service industry.
In all, the event was a great chance to synthesize the learnings from the IJET conference, and everyone was left excited for future area-based meetups and for IJET-34 in Melbourne, Australia, in September 2026.
IJET sessions discussed:
Keynote Speech: Translating the Shogun Script – Behind the Scenes
The highlight of IJET and our post-IJET discussion. We talked about the attention to detail, the number of revisions, the level of familiarity with TV/film production needed, and the problem of getting paid enough for the work involved.
AI in Translation: Friend or Foe?
Susan ran through her presentation briefly for us, listing the main questions her talk asked the audience to reflect on. This also led to Mike Freiling responding with his take on what he felt we should keep in mind about AI, given his background in the subject, including that it was valuable enough as another linguistic source to draw upon in translating ancient Japanese poetry.
金融翻訳／通訳パネルディスカッション
One of our colleagues who didn’t attend IJET was particularly interested in this session. Those who attended it spoke about each of the speakers’ vastly different takes on translating/interpreting for finance, how work involving business deals is high-paced and human-centric, while work more focused on documents and reports is slower, benefits from time zone differences, and is already being encroached on by AI.
JAT and Advocacy
Our discussion of this session centered on JAT’s published position against AI in creative translation. An example of AI being used to prevent problems arising from pirated manga getting translated before an official release, causing problems with translated terms that might need to be changed, impacting merchandising, and causing significant losses for IP holders. The counterpoint offered mentioned global simul-releases (by human translators) as the norm in the field of manga and anime already combats that particular issue. It was suggested that JAT’s published position won’t mean much unless it follows up on it in some way, which led to suggestions that JAT perhaps build some sort of list or database of examples of AI translation being detrimental to creative works (either causing misunderstandings or causing a work to undersell in a particular market).
Japanese-English Translation Workshop
A colleague who didn’t attend IJET asked about this session, and a participant talked about the fast-paced nature of the session and how it was both difficult to keep up with (and impossible to take notes) but also insightful and educational.
＋αの強みで考え、拡げる通訳翻訳業～英日＋ドイツ語という三本軸から見えてくる面白さと可能性～
Discussion of this session also arose organically from discussions of a different session. We talked about using our abilities and experience to do work outside of translation itself.
There was also a lot of enthusiasm for future events like this. Everyone seemed happy to get together with both new and familiar faces. Several people mentioned how talking with translators from different fields can be eye-opening and informative.
KAT holds seminars and gatherings for translators and interpreters living in Kansai. We are planning a late summer gathering, so please join us!
FYI:
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