Breaking the language barrier: AI in the service of a universal culture

How can museums, heritage sites and cultural festivals tell their stories to multilingual, multicultural audiences? For more than twenty years, Sycomore — a subsidiary of the VOX Group — has supported institutions in creating visitor journeys, developing innovative interpretation solutions.

Today, advances in artificial intelligence applied to language are opening up new perspectives. Instant translation now allows a guide to address visitors speaking different languages in real time. The result: more inclusive experiences and easier access for ever more diverse audiences.

From the audio guide to live translation

Pre-recorded audio guides have long been a valued interpretation solution, appreciated for their reliability and the freedom they give visitors. Sycomore continues to produce them in partnership with curators, artists and institutions, with close attention to editorial quality and cultural adaptation. Their development nonetheless remains a significant investment, particularly when offering a wide range of languages or updating content regularly.

Conversely, live translation by artificial intelligence fits seamlessly into guided tours: a single guide addresses a multilingual group, and their words are translated within seconds into more than 50 languages, without requiring specialized guides or duplicating tours by nationality. This solution combines time savings, logistical efficiency and linguistic inclusion, without replacing more individual listening formats such as the audio guide.

Understanding how VOX AURA works

"Compact, lightweight, intuitive and ready to use, VOX AURA goes beyond simple voice translation tools by understanding context before translating. Powered by our in-house AI algorithm, it recognizes proper names, cultural references and historical details, delivering natural translations in more than 50 languages. Broadcast directly on our VOX devices, the sound is crisp and fluid — close to a human interpreter." — Fabio Primerano, CEO of VOX Group

Three key applications of AI translation

• Multilingual guided tours: no more need for tours dedicated to a specific language. In a travelling exhibition moving between France, Japan and Latin America, the guide speaks in French while each visitor hears the translation in their own language, in real time.
• Hybrid events and conferences: international symposiums, often dependent on cumbersome and costly solutions, benefit from a lightweight alternative, with participants hearing the presentation in their own language through smart earpieces, on site or remotely.
• Personalized interpretation: the AI adapts to each visitor's level. Families can choose a simplified version of the commentary, while enthusiasts and experts receive more in-depth, specialized content.

The benefits for cultural institutions

• Accessibility: the language barrier is lifted, making visits more inclusive.
• Flexibility: languages can be added or changed quickly without technical burden.
• Efficiency: a significant reduction in the costs associated with human interpreters.
• Supervised quality: human linguistic curation to guarantee style and fidelity.
• Optimized guided tours: several nationalities brought together in a single group, without duplicating routes.

VOX AURA technology thus paves the way for visits without linguistic borders, fostering partnerships between institutions in different countries, while providing museums with useful data on the languages used or the content consulted. In Berlin, a curator speaks in German and visitors hear the presentation in French, Polish or Spanish; in France, a heritage site welcomes Chinese visitors with simultaneous translation into Mandarin, without organizing separate tours.

Points to watch and conclusion

A few points still need to be managed: the stylistic quality of the translations, a stable WiFi or 4G connection, support for the public, training guides to adapt their delivery, and data protection — no storage or recording of voices, in compliance with the GDPR and copyright.

Live AI translation replaces neither human interpretation nor audio guides: it enriches them, answering the new challenges of inclusion, internationalization and efficiency. By combining technological innovation with cultural expertise, Sycomore and VOX Group are opening a new era for cultural institutions: an era in which language is no longer a border, but a bridge.