IFAL at Charles University and ACTA cooperate in the domain of machine translation
On 1 May 2019, the Institute of Formal and Applied Linguistics at the Charles University (IFAL) and
the Association of Czech Translation Agencies (ACTA) signed a Letter of Intent concerning mutual
cooperation in the domain of machine translation. The parties are planning to launch their joint
project on 1 July.
IFAL and research infrastructure LINDAT/CLARIAH-CZ, led by prof. Jan Hajič and chairperson of ACTA
Radka Vegrichtová, acting together with other representatives of the association, agreed to
cooperate in four areas:
- Neural machine translation
- International conferences and training
- Sharing translation memories and know-how
- Internships and help with diploma theses
Neural Machine Translation
ACTA members wish to utilize machine translation services that were developed by a group of
professors and students at IFAL. The initial 6-month testing period will be followed by the
commercial use of this service by ACTA members.
International Conferences and Training
In October 2019, ACTA and the national translation associations of Slovakia, Hungary and Austria will
organize an international translation conference in Prague – Meet Central Europe 2019. ACTA has
expressed interest in having IFAL researchers among the conference speakers.
Sharing Translation Memories and Know-How
IFAL will present ACTA members with a proposal for sharing translation memories that are not
subject to privacy, such as texts translated for state and municipal authorities, and contract
templates.
Internships and Help with Diploma Theses
Both parties have agreed that the cooperation in this area will be coordinated with the Faculty of
Mathematics and Physics at the Charles University.