Translators in Vigo protest job losses and AI impact

The Galician Association of Translation and Interpretation Professionals (AGPTI) held a demonstration and a ‘symbolic strike’ in Vigo to protest the impact of artificial intelligence on the sector. Coinciding with World Translation Day, the association warned that the misuse of AI is destroying jobs and creating precarious working conditions for professionals.

AGPTI Secretary José Rodríguez stated that many companies and institutions are replacing human translators and interpreters with technologies that lack professional quality levels. This trend has driven down translation rates, forcing many self-employed professionals to abandon the field. The association also raised concerns regarding intellectual property, alleging that AI developers use web-based content without permission to train their models.

Furthermore, the group denounced the systematic use of ‘post-editing,’ a practice where professionals are hired only to correct machine-generated text, often resulting in them performing the full task for half the standard price. AGPTI is calling on institutions and companies to prioritize human work, demanding that AI giants pay for intellectual property and that dignified rates be established for translators.