Translation and multilingual discussions

deliberAIde separates the languages people speak (source languages) from the one language your transcript uses (target language). When they differ, the transcript is translated automatically during the Processing step — there's no separate translation label on the progress display.

Source languages: what is spoken

Source languages tell the transcription which languages to expect. You can add more than one with Add source language — so a discussion can mix, say, German and English. Setting them correctly matters: a missing source language leads to poor transcription of those passages.

Target language: what you read

The target language is the language of the finished transcript — and everything built on it, like search and the citations the Co-Pilot uses. Pick one target language for related discussions so you can compare them in a single language. If source and target are the same, nothing is translated and processing is faster.

Where to set them

Both fields sit in the Language section of the transcription settings, and you can set them at two places day to day:

• For everything by default: in the sidebar menu, open Settings and choose Transcription. These organisation defaults apply wherever nothing more specific is set.
• For a single upload: on the upload page, expand Advanced settings and adjust the Language section before you start the upload.

Not just a global setting

Languages are not decided once for the whole organisation. Projects, events, sessions and discussions each have the same Language section in their configuration dialogs, and every level inherits from the one above until you override it there — so one project can transcribe into English while the rest of the organisation uses German. Each field shows where its value comes from, with a chip such as Inherited from Organisation; if it reads Locked by Organisation instead, an admin has fixed the value from above and it cannot be changed at that level. Organisation-wide defaults explains inheritance and locking in detail.

Change languages during a live discussion

Even in a running discussion, languages are not fixed. In the discussion view, open the Settings tab of the panel on the right — its Language section holds the same Source languages and Target language fields. Changes take effect from the next segment onwards; the panel reminds you with the note Changes apply to future segments. What has already been transcribed keeps its language. This is the quickest fix when a speaker switches to a language you had not configured: add it as a source language on the spot.

What gets translated

The transcript text — every contribution is translated into the target language during processing. Speaker labels and timestamps stay as they are.

Related articles

• How long does processing take?
• Upload text transcripts
• Organisation-wide defaults